Carter
by Beanzjellly
Summary: Thea Carter moves to Beacon Hills at the start of her summer break. What will happen when she literally falls into Derek's life?
1. Prologue

"Thea! You finished packing yet?" My father Alaric yelled from downstairs.

"I'm coming! Just finished the last of it." I was moving. Yep _I._ Dad thought it was best for me to get away from here after everything that happened three years ago, though he's not coming with me. After we lost my mom and my two siblings in a fire, things changed. Dad couldn't look at me for months. I still think he's having a hard time with it since I remind him of my mom, but he's been trying for me. I know he has. 

Dad already got a place for me to stay. My cars and my bike was already at _my_ house, along with some of my clothes and other necessities. I headed downstairs and found my dad already standing in the hallway with his keys. "You ready to go sweetie?" Dad said with a small smile on his face. "I'm so driving! If we want to reach Beacon Hills today, we need my awesome driving skills." I said with a cheeky smirk on my face. Dad just rolled his eyes at me, "It takes less than two hours to get there." "Your point? You could use the rest anyways; I mean it's a long drive to New York." Dad sighed, "I'll stop along the way when I need to rest. Remind me who's the parent again? And get in the passenger seat Thea." I huffed at dad but smiled nonetheless. "Fine!" We got in dad's car and headed off towards Beacon Hills. 

It's the start of summer break, and I just finished my freshman year In high school. Dad got a job offer in New York and I'm moving to Beacon Hills. I've lived in Sacramento all my life, but me and dad both needed a change. Ever since the fire things have been strained. We never talk about it, even though we probably should. I know dad is angry and want revenge for what happened, and I do too.

Our family, we were all born werewolves. Mom and dad were both Alphas of our pack, which consisted of my parents Alaric and Maria, my big sister Lena, my twin Frederic and me.

We were a peaceful pack/family who lived amongst the humans. My parents were both lawyers, Lena was about to finish med school while me and my twin were carefree 7th graders. 

Dad flicking my nose suddenly interrupted my train of thoughts. "Huh…?" "You ok Thea? I've been calling your name for almost five minutes". I gave my dad a smile "I'm fine. Just thinking about the move, I think this will be good for us. However, I am slightly nervous about meeting your friends. Are you sure they don't mind keeping an eye on me?" Dad glanced over at me "Melissa and John are both good people. They will love you, and they both have kids your age, I'm sure you'll make fast friends with them." ' _Maybe I won't be alone for the summer break!'_ "I hope so dad, it would be nice to know someone before school starts up again." 

* * *

After almost two hours of driving, we finally reached my new house. It was big for just one person, and luckily, it had a double garage that would fit my babies. Dad got my boxes from the trunk while I got my bags. We walked up to the front door and dad unlocked it and typed in the code for the alarm.

The first floor had a cozy living room, a nice enough kitchen with a door that lead to the garage, a small gym and a bathroom. The second floor had three bedrooms and two bathrooms, one connected to the master bedroom. My favorite by far is the master bedroom. The walls painted a light grey color, a king sized bed with a nightstand on each side, a desk with a comfy looking chair, a big enough walk in closet that has a full length mirror and a vanity table. However, the best of all; the thing has a damn balcony looking over the woods!

I brought my bags up to my new bedroom to start unpacking. We're having dinner with the McCall's and Stilinski's in about an hour. I recall dad telling me he knew Sheriff Stilinski and Ms. McCall through work. I'm slightly nervous about meeting them, but excited at the same time.

After spending a half hour unpacking, I started getting ready for the dinner. I dress in my normal clothes, which consist of black skinny jeans, a white tank top, combat boots and my leather jacket. My makeup is a light stroke of eyeliner on my lid, mascara and strawberry flavored lip balm. My eyes are an icy blue color that contrasts with my waist-long wavy black hair. I'm on the shorter side, 5'3" with a toned and slightly curvy body from doing kickboxing and judo since I was six years old.

Finishing my makeup and putting on my mother's sapphire necklace, I run down the stairs to find my dad looking over some work documents. 

"You ready to go dad? We're supposed to meet them at the diner in 15 minutes." Dad looked up at me with a smile hinting on his lips as he packed his files back in his suitcase, "We have to take separate cars. I'm hitting the road once dinner is over." I grinned at dad, watching as he headed out the front door; he knew how much I love my cars.

I got my keys from the kitchen counter and head out of the house, activating the alarm and locking up on the way. I head over to the garage only to find another alarm. "Dad! What's the code to this thing?" I yelled at my dad who was already on his way to his car. He walks over to me with a sheepish smile on his face and starts typing in the code, "Right, forgot about that one. I made sure to write down all the codes you need in a notebook that is in the desk drawer in your bedroom. You know the code to the house already, but I suggest memorizing the rest of them as well." I give my dad a peck on his cheek as thanks before I run over to my car. A grey Mustang Shelby GT500 67' mod. Such a gorgeous sight. Next to the grey beauty is a black Ducati Diavel which dad got me for my 16th birthday and a black Chevy Camaro SS coupe 69' mod. Another beautiful sight on four wheels that originally belonged to my twin. We got these cars for our 11th birthday and used to spend time with dad fixing them up and getting them ready for when we got our drivers license. 

I get in my Mustang and turn the key in the ignition, hearing the familiar purr of the engine puts a smile on my face. I back out of the garage and follow my dad's car. Ten minutes later, we park outside a nice looking diner. I take a minute to gather my thoughts and will my nervousness away before I get out of my car to catch up with dad who's waiting at the entrance to the diner.

Dad walks in first with me only a step behind him. He looks around the diner before approaching the table where his friends are sitting. The two adults at the table stand up when they see us. "John, Melissa. It's good to see you both." My dad says and I can hear that he's smiling. He shakes Sheriff Stilinski's hand and gives Ms. McCall a short hug. "It's been a while Alaric. This is my boy, Stiles." Sheriff Stilinski said, watching his son shake my dad's hand. Stiles had light brown eyes and a buzz cut, he looked to be about 6ft tall on the skinny side. "It's great to see you again Alaric. This is Scott, my son." Ms. McCall said with a bright smile on her face. Scott shakes my dad's hand. He's about the same height as stiles, with a bit more muscles. Black hair and dark brown eyes. ' _They look nice enough'_ I thought while sticking my head out from behind dad looking at the four people at the table. They all turn to me and I grip the back of my dad's suit jacket. Dad turns around so I come into view and gives me an encouraging smile. "Hi, I'm Thea." I say while smiling at the curious group. 

After the introductions, we all sit down at the table and order our food while keeping a light conversation. "So Thea, do you have any hobbies?" Ms. McCall asks me while smiling at me. "Uhm… I've been doing martial arts since I was six, some sports here and there, and I really like cars." "Really? Which type of martial arts if you don't mind me asking?" Sheriff Stilinski asks. "Kickboxing and Judo." I say while smiling at the two adults. I notice Stiles whispering to Scott, so I listen in on their conversation. _"Dude! She can probably kick our asses! And look at her eyes, it's like she can just look at me and figure out all my secrets!" "I think she seems nice."_ Scott said while glancing over at me. I tune out their conversation and focus back on the parents at the table.

"Her training is one of the reasons why I'm not opposed to letting her stay here. I know she can take care of herself, but I'm very grateful that you two are willing to keep an eye on my daughter." My dad smiles gratefully at his friends. "It's not a problem at all, we are happy to look after her. Thea seems like a great girl, and she reminds me a lot of her mother." Melissa says while looking over at me with a smile.

I notice my dad stiffen and his heartbeat increasing, so I grab his hand under the table and giving it a comforting squeeze. _"Thank you sweetie."_ He whispers so only I can hear. "Yes, she is like Maria in a lot of ways." Dad says stiffly. We finished our food as the table fell into an awkward silence. "Maybe Scott and Stiles can show me around a bit while you guys finish up here?" I asked knowing my dad doesn't like talking about our family, especially while I'm around. The boys look up at me wide eyed smiling and nodding at the same time. "That's a good idea sweetie. But be back within an hour, I want to say goodbye before I have to leave." Dad says while looking up at me. I give him a kiss on the cheek and nod. "I'll see you soon Ms. McCall, Sheriff Stilinski." I say giving a short nod and a polite smile. "See you soon Thea." They say in unison while the boys and me get up from our seats and head out of the diner.

* * *

We're standing outside in the parking lot in an awkward silence. After a few minutes Stiles is the one who breaks the silence, "Scott! Scott! Dude! Check out the Mustang!" Scott looks over to where Stiles is pointing while he's frantically pulling at Scott's shirt. "Whoah…" I clear my throat and the boys look at me questioningly. I pull my keys out from the pocket of my leather jacket and dangle them in front of them. "Want to go for a spin?" Their eyes widen and huge grins break out on their faces. "Seriously?!" Stiles yells looking between the car and me. "Yup, let's go." I say with a smirk on my face as I start walking towards the car with the boys scampering after. "I totally call shotgun." Stiles said while I was unlocking the car. Scott pouted a bit but got in the back.

I settled in the driver's seat and turned the key in the ignition, hearing the familiar purr of the engine. I peel out of the parking lot having no idea where I'm supposed to drive. "This is awesome…" Stiles says in awe. I can literally feel the excitement rolling off him in waves. "Any place good for testing the speed?" I ask while glancing at the boys with a smile on my face.

After driving around for twenty minutes, we come to a stop at a cliff looking over Beacon Hills. "Nice view." I comment while looking out the windshield. We sit in comfortable silence for a few minutes before deciding to head back to the diner. We make small talk on the way, getting to know each other better. "I'm glad we're in the same year in high school. I was kinda freaking out about not knowing anyone at the school." I admit shyly. "We'll show you around to all the classes and you can sit with us at lunch if you want. It's usually just me and Stiles, but we wouldn't mind you joining us. Right Stiles?" Scott says while looking over at his best friend. "Right! Yeah, don't mind at all! We could use the extra company." We stop the car in front of the diner and walk in to meet up with dad and his friends again.

"There you are!" Dad says while looking over at us. "I have to get going now Thea, are you going to be OK from here?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine dad. I'll call you if I need anything." Dad looks me over and nods before pulling me into a hug. _"I love you Thea Luna Carter. I know it's been tough for the past few years, but never forget that."_ My eyes start to water and I put my arms around him, hugging him back tightly. _"I know daddy. I love you too."_ Dad's grip around me lessen while he looks over at Ms. McCall and Sheriff Stilinski. "Thanks again for this, it means a lot." "Of course, we're happy to keep an eye on Thea." My two new _guardians_ smiles at me. Dad kisses my forehead then start heading towards the door. "Call me when you get there!" I shout after him. "I will _Little Moon._ " He says the last part so only I can hear it. A tear fall from my eyes and roll down my cheek, he hasn't used his nickname for me since the fire.

* * *

Once I hear his car driving out of the parking lot, I turn back to the four people I will probably spend a lot of time with from here on out. "So… Anyone else craving cake?" They all start laughing and we sit back down at the table. We order our cake and keep the conversation going for a good thirty minutes before we decide to call it a night. "If you don't remember the way back to the neighborhood, you can just follow behind us. We live right across the road from each other." Ms. McCall says while we're heading to our cars. _I can just sniff my way home._ I thought, but there's no way I can say that. "Sure! That would be great." I give Sheriff Stilinski and Stiles a hug before I head over to my car. They both stiffen and get this awkward look on their faces. I just shrug it off and say goodnight with a big smile on my face.

After the short drive home, I park my car in the garage. I walk over to the McCall's, "Thanks for tonight, it was nice getting to know you both." I say while giving them both a hug. "It was nice getting to know you too sweetie. If you need anything just give us a call, or come right over." Ms. McCall says while hugging me back. "Thanks, I will. I'll see you around Scott!" I say while heading back to my house. "Hey Thea? You want to hang out with me and Stiles tomorrow?" I look back at Scott with a big smile on my face, "Sure, sounds fun. Just come get me whenever. Goodnight Scott." "Night Thea." He smiles back at me. _Seems like summer break might get interesting if I hang out with those two._ I walk in to my house and lock up with a smile still on my face, happy that I made some friends in this town already.

I head upstairs and get ready for bed; it's been a long day. My phone buzzes on the nightstand and I walk over with my toothbrush still in my mouth. ' _Thea, I gave your phone number to John and Melissa. I'm sure they have already given it to Scott and Stiles. I wrote down all their numbers in the notebook I put in your desk. Remember to memorize all the codes that's in it. I love you Little Moon. Sweet dreams.'_

I text him back quickly saying thanks and that I love him too. Walking back into the bathroom, I wash up and change into my pj's which consist of a black tank top and black cotton booty shorts with the Batman logo printed all over it.

I crawl into my bed and send a text to Scott and Stiles saying I'm looking forward to seeing them again tomorrow, before I connect my phone to the charger. It doesn't take long for me to fall asleep with a tiny smile on my face, looking forward to my stay here in Beacon Hills.


	2. Chapter 1

I'm lying on my bed listening to music, trying to calm my nerves. Tomorrow is the first day of school. Summer break just flew by, I spent most of it with Scott and Stiles just relaxing and goofing around. Dad has been busy with cases at his new job in New York, he still call me twice a week to check up on me.

Ms. McCall and Sheriff Stilinski have been great. Whenever I get lonely or just, don't feel like eating dinner alone, I can go over to either of their houses. Scott and Stiles have been staying at my house quite a lot, spending our time watching movies and playing videogames while stuffing our faces with an unnecessary amount of junk food. Thank god I have a naturally high metabolism as a werewolf.

In the distance, I hear Stiles's jeep coming down the street. I head down to the kitchen so I can see what's going on from the window. Stiles gets out of his jeep and runs towards the McCall house and starts climbing up to where I know Scott's room is. _'What the hell?'_ I think as I quickly put on my combat boots and grab my leather jacket on my way out. I lock the front door after turning the alarm on and start sneaking my way over to see what the hell Stiles is up to.

I get over there just in time to see Scott come out of his front door with a baseball bat. Suddenly Stiles loses his footing and end up hanging upside down from the roof. Scott screams and waves the bat around which in turn makes Stiles scream even louder. I can't stop myself from laughing as I approach the boys. "Stiles what the hell are you doing?!" Scott and I yells at the same time. "None of you were answering your phones! Why do you have a bat Scott…?" "I thought you were a predator." Stiles blinks a couple times staring at Scott in disbelief. "A pred… what the – look, I know it's late but you guys have got to hear this. I saw my dad leave twenty minutes ago, dispatch called. They're bringing in every officer from the Beacon Department, and even State Police!" "For what?" I ask while looking at Stiles who is getting down from the roof. "Two joggers found a body in the woods." I tense up a bit. _'This can't be good'.  
_ "A dead body?" Scott ask stiles with big eyes. "No, a body of water. Yes dumbass! A dead body!" Stiles is flailing his arms around, as if this is the most exciting thing that has happened in this town. Scott still seem sceptic to all of this. "You mean like murdered?" Stiles looks between us, "Nobody knows yet. Just that it was a girl. Probably in her 20's." "Hold on." I say while looking back at the boys. "If they found the body, then what are they looking for?" Stiles's smile grow with excitement. "That's the best part. They only found half. We're going." My eyes widen immediately. "I'm in!" Scott looks at us both as if we're crazy while we get in Stiles's jeep and head for Beacon Hills preserve.

* * *

"Are we seriously doing this?" Scott asks as we trudge our way through the woods. "Dude, you're the one always bitching about nothing happening in this town." I tune out their conversation and try to focus on my senses instead. I can't smell anything other than the damp forest and the two guys beside me. I ask Stiles what I've been wondering since we got out of his jeep, "Stiles. Just out of curiosity, which half of the body are we looking for?" Stiles get a blank look on his face. "Huh… I didn't even think about that." This time Scott speaks up, "And what if whoever killed the girl is still out here?" "Also something I didn't think about." Scott and I exchange a look of disbelief and worry. "It's… comforting to know you've planned this out with your usual attention to detail." "I know."

We keep walking through the woods and I notice Scott's breath starting to come out in wheezes and short pants. "Are you ok Scott?" He pulls out his inhaler and takes a deep breath from it. "Yeah, I'm ok. Maybe the severe asthmatic should be the one holding the flashlight, huh?" Stiles just keep walking as we spot the cops ahead of us. "Wait, come on!" He says as he grabs my arm to pull me with him. "Stiles, Thea, wait up! Stiles! Thea!" Stiles just keep dragging me along, I could have easily pulled out of his grip with my extra strength, but I cat risk him finding out about me. We sneak around to get a better glimpse of what the cops are doing; their conversations aren't making much sense to me. "Hold it right there!" one of the deputies shouts as he sees us. We freeze in our tracks looking at each other wide eyed. "Crap." We say in unison. "Hang on, hang on. These little delinquents belongs to me." Sheriff Stilinski says as he approach us. "Sheriff! Hi! How are you?" I ask with an overly enthusiastic smile on my face at the same time as Stiles says "Dad! Hi!" Sheriff Stilinski looks at stiles, "So uhm… do you listen in to all of my phone calls?" "Pfft, no! Uh, not the boring ones." The sheriff rolls his eyes at his son before he looks over at me. "Now where is your other partner in crime?" "Who, Scott? Scott's home. Yeah, he said he wanted to get a good night's sleep for practice tomorrow. It's just me and Thea. In the woods. Alone." Sheriff Stilinski raises his eyebrow at us before he turns to shine his flashlight to where we came from. "Scott, you out there? Scott!" There is no reply and I can't hear Scott's heartbeat. I guess he made a break for it. Sheriff Stilinski sighs, "I'm going to bring you two back to your car. And Stiles, you and I are gonna have a conversation about something called invasion of privacy." Stiles just nods his head as Sheriff Stilinski starts pulling him by his jacket and I walk close behind them. "Uh, Sheriff? My dad doesn't need to hear about this. Right?" I say while giving him puppy eyes. He stops to look at me and sighs. "No. I think I would get in more trouble than you if Alaric heard you were running around in the woods after midnight." I smile brightly up at him, "Thanks Sheriff!"

It doesn't take long for us to reach Stiles's jeep. We buckle up and Stiles start driving back to my house. "Do you think Scott is ok? I kinda feel bad. We just left him in the woods." I say as I look out the window. "He's gonna be fine. It's Scott we're talking about! We'll see him at school tomorrow." "Yeah, you're right."  
Stiles stop the car in front of my house and I give him a hug as we say goodnight.

Once I'm in my room, I walk in to my closet and start getting my clothes for tomorrow ready. It doesn't take long since all my clothes are practically the same. I like it that way. I take a quick shower before brushing my teeth and changing into my pj's. I braid my hair in a simple French braid so it won't be all over the place tomorrow. I get under my covers and send Scott a quick text asking if he's ok, before setting my alarm. It's been a long night, so it doesn't take long for me to fall into a deep sleep.

* * *

The next morning I wake up to my alarm. I quickly get up, get dressed, do my makeup, and run my fingers through my hair before gathering all the stuff I need for school in a black leather backpack. _'Wonder which ride I'll go with today'_ I think as I run downstairs to make a sandwich. My phone buzzes in my back pocket. _"I'm ok. Just abit sore. Some animal bit me last night. I'll see you at school? We can talk more about it there. Scott"_ "WHAT?!" I shout out as I read the text. _'This can't be good at all. But I haven't caught the scents of any other werewolves in the area. Maybe I'm just overreacting.'_ I think as I finish my sandwich and grab the keys to my Mustang.

When I get to school, I can already hear all the murmurs around about who the new girls are, and about my car. _'Huh, so I'm not the only new one. That's kind of a relief.'_ I think as I get out of my car and start walking towards what I hope to be the principal's office. When I get there, I spot a girl with dark brown hair and a cute face. "Hi, are you the other new girl?" I ask while approaching her. She looks at me with a shy smile, "Um, yeah. I'm Allison. You're new too?" "Yeah, I just moved here at the start of summer break. I'm Thea." I say with a smile. Soon enough the vice-principal comes over to us with our schedules and other necessary papers. "I see you two have already met each other, great. Let's head to your first class which is English." 

We walk into class and I see Scott and Stiles sitting at the back of the classroom. "Class, these are our new students, Allison Argent and Thea Carter. Please do your best to make them feel welcome." We say our thanks to the vice-principal as he leaves the classroom. Allison takes the seat behind Scott, and I take the one next to Stiles. "We'll begin with Kafka's Metamorphosis, on page 133." The teacher says. "Psst, Thea! Did Scott tell you what happened last night?" Stiles whispers to me as we completely zone out from the lecture. "Yeah, he texted me this morning. Some kind of animal bit him?" "Yeah, he said it was a wolf. But that's impossible; there haven't been any wolves in California for over 60 years!" I tense up at Stiles's words and focus on my senses. Scott smells differently, but only slightly. _'Shit! I need to call dad ASAP. Not only are the Argents in town, but an alpha as well.'_ I think as I raise my hand. "Yes Miss Carter?" "Can I use the bathroom?" The teacher looks at me for a few seconds before nodding. "Be quick about it." 

I rush out of the classroom, _"What was that about?"_ Stiles mutters to himself, I could barely hear him since I was already outside the bathroom. I make sure no one is in there before I call my dad. It doesn't take long for him to answer, _"Thea? Aren't you supposed to be at school?"_ "I am. Listen, the Argents are here, I don't know how many. I only met Allison, she's in my class." I say before taking a deep breath. _"Ah, she must be Chris's daughter. Don't worry too much dear. I'm keeping tabs on the ones who we need to watch out for."_ Dad says in a calm tone. "But that's not all! Last night, Scott was bitten. He told me this morning, and I could smell it on him in class. His body is accepting the bite." Dad stays quiet for a few seconds. _"So there's an alpha there as well. Listen sweetie, just try to go on as normal as possible. You're strong and fast. Just remember, if you encounter the alpha, don't under any circumstances show them your eyes. In addition, when it comes to Scott, don't reveal anything, he will have a connection to he alpha. And I'm sure he will figure out himself what is happening to him."_ I let out a sigh and rub my forehead. "Ok. Thanks dad. I gotta head back to class now, I'll talk to you soon. Love you." _"Love you too sweetie."_

I put my phone back in my pocket and look into the mirror in the bathroom. I quickly flash my eyes, too fast for any human to notice. One a bright amber and the other a deep red color. I head back to the classroom just ass the bell rings, "Sorry, I got lost." I smile sheepishly at the teacher. He just gives me a nod and I walk to my desk to gather my stuff.  
The rest of the day went by in a blur. I met Jackson and Lydia, who invited us to a party Friday night. Jackson seems like a complete prick, I mean, who the hell keeps eyeing other girls when his own girlfriend is right next to him. Lydia is very pretty but she seems a bit too shallow for my liking.

We arrive at the stands by the lacrosse fields and I take a seat beside Allison and Lydia. I smile and wave at Scott and Stiles and mouth a _'good luck_ ' to them. Allison looks between the boys and me, "Who is that?" I'm about to answer but Lydia beats me to it, "Him? I'm not sure who he is. Why?" She looks at Allison curiously. "He's in me and Thea's English class." "That's Scott McCall." Allison looks at me and furrows her brows a bit. I can tell by the slight flush in her cheeks and the spike in her heartrate that she has a tiny crush him. "He's my neighbor. Our parents and Stiles's dad are close friends. So when I moved here we kinda just clicked. He totally has a thing for you by the way." I finish with a smirk on my face and a raised brow. Allison blush even more and can't seem to keep the smile off of her face.

I keep an eye on Scott during practice. When coach blows his whistle, Scott seems disoriented by the high-pitched noise. _'Damn, that has gotta hurt.'_ I think as I make my way down to Stiles who's sitting at the bench. Scott still seems disoriented when someone suddenly launches the ball toward the goal, hitting him square in the helmet, knocking him onto his back. After a few seconds, his heartrate goes up and he regains his footing. "Is Scott normally good at this?" I ask Stiles as I take a seat next to him. "No, we both suck. Terribly." We watch as Scott prepares for the next ball just as it flies toward him. Everyone seems surprised when he catches it. He stops three more attempted goals, which seems to piss Jackson off. He forces his way to the front of the line and hurls the ball toward Scott with a running start. Scott catches the ball easily, causing Stiles to leap to his feet dragging me with him to cheer for our friend.

* * *

After practice, we find ourselves walking through the Beacon Hills Preserve again. "I don't know what it was. It was like I had all the time in the world to catch the ball. And that's not the only weird thing. I, I can hear stuff I shouldn't be able to hear. Smell things." Scott says as we're walking slowly through the woods. "Smell things?" Stiles asks with his brows raised, "Like what?" "Like the mint-mojito gum in your pocket, and the skittles in Thea's backpack." Stiles get a doubtful look on his face, "I don't even have any mint-mojito…" he sticks his hand in his pocket and pulls out the piece of gum. He looks at it for a second before shrugging and putting it in his mouth. "So all of this started with a bite?" Stiles then go in to teasing Scott about being a werewolf. _'If only he knew how right he is. I need to keep an eye on Scott at the party on Friday.'_ Scott stops walking, "I could have sworn this was it. I saw the body, the deer came running and I dropped my inhaler." "Maybe the killer moved the body," Stiles says as looks around. I give him my backpack and start climbing a big tree. "What the hell are you doing Thea? We came to find Scott's inhaler, not play monkeys!" Stiles says while I keep climbing. "Uhm… vantage point?"

"If he did move the body, I hope he left my inhaler. Those things are like 80 bucks." Scott says as he keep looking around. Suddenly I sense a presence around us, so I crouch down on the branch I've been standing on to look around. "What are you doing here? Huh? This is private property." His deep voice startles me and I slip on the branch. I scream as I go down, but manage to catch the branch with my legs so I'm hanging upside down by my knees. Three heads snap towards me and I can't help the blush that creeps it's way onto my cheeks. "Uhm, yeah don't mind me." I say as I make my way down from the branch by swinging my upper body, grabbing the branch and moving my legs so I'm hanging by my hands. I let go of the branch and land soundly on the forest ground. I look up at the stranger and my breath hitches in my throat. 

He's tall and muscular clad in black jeans, a black shirt and a black leather jacket. I let my eyes roam his body before landing on his face. He has an angular jawline, soft looking lips, high cheekbones and his black hair is shaped to perfection. When I get to his eyes, I notice his eyes are roaming my body before they lock with mine. It's like my whole world stops. They are the most beautiful green I have ever seen, and it's like he's looking right into my soul. I can smell that he's a werewolf, and I'm sure he knows I'm one too.

I'm frozen on the spot, my heartbeat is increasing, my body is heating up and I can feel my wolf trying to gain control. _'What the hell is happening?'_ I furrow my brows in confusion. I haven't had any problems with my self-control for the past two years.

We keep eye contact for a few more seconds before Stiles and Scott break off our staring, "Uh sorry man, we didn't know." "Yeah, we were just looking for something. But uh, forget it." Scott says then looks at me, "Come on Thea, I gotta get to work." I look over at the stranger just as he tosses Scott his inhaler. He gives me one last look over before he turns around and walk back to wherever he came from. I walk over to Scott and Stiles, and we head back to the jeep. "Dude, that was Derek Hale! You remember, right? He's only like a few years older than us." Stiles says. "Remember what?" Scott asks. "His family. They all burned to death in a fire, like, ten years ago." I flinch at Stiles's words. "OH! I'm sorry Thea! I didn't mean…" Over the summer, I told them about my family, they were curious as to why I was living alone. So I told them as much as I could. "It's ok Stiles. You guys don't have to tip toe around me when it comes to the subject." I send him a smile so he'll know I'm serious. I feel eyes burning into my back, so I turn my head and lock eyes with Derek who's staring at me with an unreadable expression. "I wonder what he's doing back." Scott says as we climb into the jeep.

* * *

 **Derek Hale**

I get back to the burnt down house in the middle of the woods. I slam the front door shut and lean my head against it. _'What the hell is happening?'_

I keep thinking back to the incident in the woods with the three teens. At first, I was pissed that someone was on my property, but once _she_ came flying down from that tree, I couldn't care less about it anymore.

Watching the way her body moved as she made her way down from the tree had my heart pumping. I could smell that she's a werewolf. _'Was she bitten by the alpha too?'_

After she landed on the forest ground, I looked at her from head to toe. Black combat boots and black skinny jeans that hugged her hips like a second skin. Her fitted leather jacket showed off her slim waist and her perfect chest. Her heart shaped face with plump pink lips and a button nose. Her hair was black waves reaching down to her waist. I noticed that she had been checking me out as well, and I couldn't help feeling satisfied by the thought of her looking at me from head to toe.  
When I locked eyes with her, my heart literally skipped a beat and I could feel my inner wolf wanting to come out. Her eyes were the most beautiful icy blue color. ' _Mine!'_ my wolf all but snarled. The two idiot friends of hers interrupted our staring, and they started walking back after I gave the beta his inhaler. As she walked away, I couldn't help but look at her perfectly round ass. I lock eyes with her one last time before she gets in the jeep with her friends. _'I have to see her again.'_ I think to myself as I walk out of the house.

* * *

 **Thea Carter**

I'm sitting on my bed talking to dad, trying to explain what happened in the woods today. "I don't know! It was like once I looked into his eyes, everything froze, I couldn't focus on anything but him and I had a really hard time not letting my wolf show. Do you know what's happening to me?" I ask desperately. Ever since the incident in the woods, I haven't been able to stop thinking about Derek. It's like my brain can't even function normally anymore. _"Sounds like you found your mate Thea."_ My eyes widen at dad's words. "Mate? As in soulmate? Is that stuff even real? And you sound oddly calm about all this." I ask skeptically. _"Yes. Your mother and I were mates. It's rare to find your mate these days, but it's not unheard of. Anyway, I have to hang up now Thea, I'm still at work. I'll send you an e-mail with all the information I have on mates later. Love you sweetie."_ "Thanks dad. Love you too." I hang up the phone and flop back on my bed with a sigh. _'I have a mate…'_ I think to myself as I lay on my bed.

Suddenly _his_ Scent hits me, and I have to concentrate to keep my heartrate normal. I sit up on my bed and focus on my hearing. He's in the woods by my balcony. "Instead of standing out there spying on me, you could just come inside. The door is open." I say, knowing he can hear me.  
It doesn't take long before he sits on the chair by my desk. "What are you doing here?" I ask with my eyes trained on him. _'How can someone be so impossibly attractive?'_ He looks at me for a second before he speaks up. "Were you bitten at the same time Scott was?" "No," His eyes widen a fraction as I continue. "I was born like this. And before you go thinking I'm the one who bit Scott, I was with Stiles at the time, trying to explain to the cops exactly what we were doing in the woods after midnight on the night before first day of school." He relaxes a bit and nods. "I overheard your phone call with your dad." "You mean you eavesdropped." I say with a raised brow. He rolls his eyes at me before standing up and walk over to my bed. He sits down beside me and look at me with an expressionless face. "Do you believe it?" I ask quietly. My heart is pounding in my chest and I can feel my cheeks flush at his close proximity.  
Derek raises his hand and slowly cups my cheek. The sparks coming from his soft touch makes me gasp. "Yes." He whispers as he leans in to kiss my forehead. I close my eyes, enjoying the feeling of his lips on my skin. It only lasts a second before there's a gust of wind, and when I open my eyes Derek is nowhere to be seen.

The next day goes by in a blur, until Stiles calls me over to his place. "So what are we doing?" "Research. Lab results came back from L.A; they found wolf hairs on the body from the woods!" I help Stiles with his research for a few hours. _'This is such a waste of time'._ "Stiles?" He looks up at me with a pen in his mouth, "Yeah?" I look at him with a neutral expression. "I'm a werewolf." Stiles looks at me and blinks a couple of times before he burst out laughing. "What the hell are you talking about? Scott's the one who was bitten." He says and keeps laughing. I flick my claws out, "Believe me now?" "OH my god! You – you're.. Holy shit." I retract my claws, "I'll answer all your questions. Just, please don't tell Scott. I'm waiting for him to figure out by himself, you know. With the new wolfy senses and all." Stiles just nods, and it doesn't take long before he starts barraging questions at me.


	3. Chapter 2

"So let me get this straight.." Stiles says after questioning me for about an hour. "You were born a werewolf, your father is one too, and you have control during a full moon. Right? "

"Yes."

"And you want to let Scott figure out that you're a werewolf by himself."

"Yes. Look at it as training for him; he gets to tap into his senses. It's good practice. Shouldn't take him too long to figure it out." I say as I flip through one of Stiles's books about Lycanthropy.

"Right. Anyways, we need to tell him that he's a werewolf. He's going to the party with Allison tonight."

"Yeah, that's not good. The full moon is tonight, if he gets out of control it can get ugly." I get up from the bed I've been sitting on and hug Stiles before I head to the door. "I'm gonna go home and get some sleep. You tell Scott, call me if you need any help."

I collapse on my bed once I get home, not even bothering to get out of my clothes.  
I wake up hours later feeling slightly uncomfortable. Sleeping in skinny jeans is not something I want to do again. It's already four in the afternoon, so I've been sleeping all day. I head down to the kitchen to get something to eat before I decide to take a shower. After eating my sandwich, I go back to my room to get clean underwear and a towel before getting in the shower.

* * *

After washing up and shaving I get out of the shower. I dry myself off and put on my black lace boyshorts and bra. I head back into my room just as my phone calls. "Hello?" I say as I pick up.  
 _"Thea! I tried to tell Scott but he didn't listen! I told him about the bloodlust and what can cause the change and all that, but he still didn't listen! And now I have claw marks in my chair…"_ Stiles rambles on.  
"Are you ok? Where's Scott now?" Suddenly I sense a presence behind me. I can smell that it's Derek. I'm about to turn around when he puts his hands on my hips. My skin tingles where his hands are, and I can barely focus on Stiles's words.  
 _"Yeah I'm fine. But we need to go to that party. What if he wolfs out and eats someone?! Would that be considered cannibalism since he's still part human…"_ I zone out from the conversation as Derek leans in and runs his nose up my neck inhaling deeply. I tense up and stutter out my next words  
"Uh – yeah, listen Stiles, I gotta g-go. I- I'll meet you at the p-party."  
 _"You ok Thea? You're sounding weird."  
_ "Yeah I-I'm fine! I'll see you soon!" I quickly hang up and turn around. I come face to chest with Derek who's still grabbing my hips.

"Wh-What are you doing here?" I ask as I look up at him.  
"Nice ink." He says as he runs his hands slowly up my bare sides.  
My eyes widen and my cheeks flush when I realize that I'm in nothing more than my underwear. I'm frozen for a few seconds before I make a run for the closet and all but slam the door shut.

I lean my back against the door and curse under my breath. I hear his deep chuckle from right outside the door, and I can't help but enjoy the sound.  
I quickly get dressed in black ripped skinnyjeans and a white top and do my makeup before I walk out of the closet, my face still red.  
Derek is sitting on the edge of my bed looking up at me with a brow raised in amusement.  
"I'm glad my embarrassment amuses you." I say sarcastically.  
"No need to be embarrassed. I enjoyed the view." Derek says with a smirk on his face.  
I roll my eyes at him, "You never told me why you're here."  
He doesn't answer for a few seconds. "I don't know," his tone turns serious "I shouldn't be here. Mate or not, I can't give you that. Even if I wanted to, I don't know how." He says with a blank face. "But I can't seem to stay away from you."

I sigh and run my fingers through my hair, "So what do you suggest we do? I have no idea how this works. The only thing I know about being a werewolf is how to control the change and my senses, and about different ranks. And to stay away from the hunters."  
Derek furrows his brows and looks at me questioningly, "But you were born like this?"  
I sit down beside him on the bed indian style, "Yes, but in my family they didn't start teaching us most of the stuff until we were fourteen. My dad and I have been alone since I was thirteen. Two of those years he could barely look at me," I fidget with the hem of my tank top as I continue, "I had to teach myself how to control the change on a full moon, how to tap into my senses. Dad helped me with my fighting until I was thirteen, but after that, I just kept going myself."

I sigh and get up from my bed, but Derek grabs my hand,  
"Where are you going?" I gently pull my hand back and grab my leather jacket.  
"To the party to make sure Stiles doesn't get himself killed. And that Scott doesn't eat anyone. You driving?" I ask with a smirk on my face.  
Derek looks at me and nods once before we head out of the house.

* * *

"Nice car. 2009 model?" I ask studying his black Camaro. He looks surprised for a second, "Thanks. And yes it is." We get in his car and head to the party.  
Derek stops the car, and I open the door to run off to find Stiles. Once I get in the house, the smell of sweat and alcohol hits me like a ton of bricks. _'God this is gross'_ I cringe. It doesn't take me long to locate Stiles with some guys from school.  
"Hey! Where's Scott?" I ask him while giving him a quick hug.  
"He's outside dancing with Allison. Let's go see how he's doing." We find Scott just as he walks away from Allison.  
"Hey Scott, you good?" Stiles asks, but Scott just keep walking with Allison hot on his trail.  
Stiles and I share a look before running after them. We get outside just in time to watch Scott drive off, leaving Allison confused.  
"Go see if you can follow Scott, but keep your distance." I tell Stiles as I walk over to Allison.  
"Hey, you ok?" I ask her as I put a hand on her shoulder.  
"He just left. No explanation or anything." Allison says looking down the road where Scott drove off.  
"I'm sure he had a good reason. He'll probably apologize to you when he sees you at school on Monday." I give her a smile as I notice Derek walking over to us.  
"Thea, Allison. I'm a friend of Scott's. My name's Derek." He says with a small smile on his face. "I'll drive you girls home."  
Allison looks over at me questioningly; I just nod my head at her. "Thanks." She says quietly while getting in the back of his car. I get in the passenger seat and we drive off. 

When we get to Allison's house, I get out of the car and help her out. "Are you gonna be ok?" I ask her quietly.  
"Yeah," she gives me a quick hug while asking, "I'll see you on Monday?"  
"Yeah, goodnight." I say as I get back in the car with Derek. 

We drive in silence for a few minutes before my phone rings. "Stiles?"  
 _"Thea! Thank god! Where are you?!"_ He asks frantically.  
"I'm in Derek's car. Why, what's going on?"  
 _"I told Scott you and Allison were getting a ride from Derek, and he flipped. He think Derek is the one who bit him. Then he just took off, jumped off of his balcony!"_ Stiles yells and I wince at the high sound.  
Derek grabs my phone, "We'll handle it." He says curtly before hanging up.  
I catch Allison's faint scent, turn around, and grab her jacket that's laying in the back seat.  
"Allison forgot her jacket…" Derek looks over at me briefly and says, "We can use that to get Scott. If he catches yours and Allison's scent, he will track it down and we can wait for him."

* * *

And that's how I find myself lurking around the preserve with Derek. He hangs Allison's jacket on a branch before grabbing my hand and leading me away so we can keep watch.  
"When Scott shows up, I want you to stay here. If there's any sign of trouble, you run. Got it?" His hand tightens around mine.  
"I can take care of myself you know. Just worry about Scott, I'll be fine." I smile up at him. He sighs and looks like he's about to argue, but gives a curt nod instead.  
"I just realized something." He looks at me questioningly. "You are really tall."  
Derek raises his brow and his lips twitch in amusement.  
"Is that so?" He takes a step closer to me and I have to crane my neck to be able to see his face. We stare at each other silently for a few second before he raises his hand and carefully cups my cheek. "So beautiful…" He mutters quietly while stroking his thumb over my cheekbone.  
His hands are big and warm with calloused yet soft skin. I lean into his touch and a sigh of content leaves my lips.  
The sound of twigs snapping and leaves crunching interrupts us. Derek gives me a look as to tell me ' _Stay here.'_ I just nod and listen in on what's happening. 

"Where are they?!" Scott asks and I can hear he's in his wolf form.  
"They're safe. From you." Derek says as he approaches Scott. He grabs Scott and they roll a few times before Derek pins him to a tree.  
"What did you do with them?!" Scott yells at Derek.  
"Shh, quiet!" Derek says as he's looking around. I take a deep breath to catch a scent. _'Hunters…'_ I think just as Derek says, "Too late. They're already here. Run!" He runs towards me, grabs my hand and we keep running.  
Suddenly we hear Scott scream, and we exchange a look before turning back.  
Scott is pinned to a tree with an arrow through his arm. "Shit," I curse quietly. "You distract the hunters and I'll grab Scott." Derek nods and runs off.  
When I see him, throwing the first hunter against a tree, I run over to Scott and break off the arrow and we make a run for it. 

Derek caught up to us soon, and Scott falls to the ground panting as his face changes back. "Who were they?!"  
"Hunters. The kind that have been hunting us for centuries." Derek says.  
Scott gets to his feet and start yelling, "Us?! You mean you! You did this to me!" I'm about to interrupt him, but Derek beats me to it.  
"Is it really so bad, Scott? That you can see better – hear more clearly, move faster than any human could ever hope? You've been given something that most people would kill for. The bite is a gift."  
Scott keeps panting and holding his arm in pain as he says, "I don't want it."  
Derek looks at him for a second, "You will. And you're gonna need me if you want to learn how to control it." He leans forward and puts his hand on Scott's shoulder, "So you and me, Scott – We're brothers now." He says and takes a few steps away before he turns to me, "You coming?"  
"No, I'll make sure Scott gets home," I say quietly. "I'll see you later?" I ask looking up at him. Derek's eyes soften a bit, "Yeah, I'll see you later." He says before walking away. 

I turn to Scott, "You ok Scotty?"  
He looks at me for a few seconds and furrows his brows. "You're a werewolf too. Why didn't you tell me?"  
I sit down beside him and give him a smile, "It's not exactly something I can go around and tell everyone. Plus I figured it would be nice practice for you to find out by yourself, you know, with the new extra senses and all. I'm just surprised you didn't notice sooner." We sit quietly for a while before I speak up again, "We should head home. The sun is coming up soon." Scott nods, and I help him up.

* * *

We've been walking for about a half hour when Stiles's powder blue jeep comes to a stop beside us. "Thank god you two are ok! Get in."  
I get in the back and Scott in the passenger seat. We drive in silence until Scott speaks up.  
"You know what actually worries me the most?"  
"If you say Allison, I'm gonna punch you in the head." Stiles quipped.  
"She probably hates me now." Scott says, and Stiles and I let out a sigh.  
"I doubt that," I say as I put a hand on Scott's shoulder. "But you might want to come up with a pretty amazing apology."  
"Or!" Stiles chimed in, "you know, you could just – tell her the truth, and – revel in the awesomeness of the fact that you're a freaking werewolf." Scott and I give him a look that says _'Are you fucking kidding me?'  
_ "Ok, bad idea. But hey! We'll get through this. Come on, if we have to, Thea and I will chain you up on full moon nights and I'll feed you live mice. I had a boa once. I could do it." Scott scoffs out a laugh and shakes his head.

* * *

The rest of the weekend pass by quickly, and I'm at school walking into the boys locker room with Scott and Stiles before their lacrosse practice.  
"Did you apologize to Allison?" Stiles asks.  
"Yeah…" Scott says looking dazed.  
"Is she giving you a second chance or-"  
"Yeah…"  
"Yeah! All right," Stiles says with a smile on his face, "So everything is good."  
"No." Scott sighs.  
"No?" Stiles inquirers.  
"Remember – the hunters. Her dad is of them."  
My eyes widen, "Wait, that was her dad?" I ask.  
"He shot me, with a crossbow." Scott says slowly.  
Stiles looks like he has a hard time believing it, "Allison's father – "  
"Yes! Her father!" Scott yells and starts breathing heavily, "Oh my god…"  
Stiles rushes over to him "No, Scott! Snap back! He didn't recognize you, right?  
"No. n-no," Scott stutters, "I don't know…"  
"Does she know about him?" I inquire, looking at Scott.  
"I don't know! Oh god…"  
"Okay, just focus on lacrosse," Stiles says as he picks up Scott's gear, "Take this. Take this, and focus on lacrosse for now, okay? That's all you gotta do, yeah?" He claps Scott on his arm before he stumbles away to the field. I follow him and yell over my shoulder "C'mon Scotty!" 

I sit on the stands by the lacrosse field while doing my chemistry homework. I glance over at Scott every now and then to make sure he's doing ok. 

"My – my grandmother can move faster than that. And she's dead. You think you can move faster than the – lifeless corpse of my dead grandmother?" I hear Coach Finnstock say to Scott while he's hunched over on the field.  
"Yes, coach."  
"I can't hear you."  
"Yes coach!"  
"Then do it again." Coach says slowly before he backs up, "McCall's gonna do it again! McCall's gonna do it again!" Scott gets back in line and coach blows his whistle, "Let's go!"  
I look up while chewing on my pen and watch as Scott tackles Jackson to the ground. Scott grabs his head and falls over and Stiles looks panicked.  
"Shit, this isn't good." I say quietly to myself before spitting my pen out, and rushing down to the field.  
"Scott? Scott, you okay?" Stiles asks as he wraps his arm around Scott's shoulder. I kneel down in front of Scott and see that his eyes are a bright amber.  
"I can't control it, Stiles, Thea. It's happening."  
"What? Right here? Now? Come on, get up!" Stiles says frantically.  
"Let's take him to the locker room." I say as I grab Scott and Stiles by their arms and drag them away quickly. I noticed Derek watching us, but I just kept going. 

As we get to the locker room, Stiles kneels in front of Scott, "You okay?"  
"Get away from me!" Scott growls and I drag Stiles away and push him behind me.  
"Stay back Stiles!" I yell as I flick my claws out and growl at Scott.  
Stiles backs away and runs to hide behind the shelfs. Scott tries to swipe at me, but I dodge it. The he jumps on top of the shelfs and follow Stiles. "Shit!" I yell as I follow the boys.  
I get to Stiles just as he pulls out the fire extinguisher and sprays it all over Scott. Stiles hide behind the wall by the door to the locker room, but I stay behind to watch at Scott calms down. "Stiles? Thea? What happened?" He asks while panting.  
Stiles comes back in the room, "You tried to kill us," he kneels down in front of Scott, "It's like I told you before. It's the anger. It's the pulse rising. It's a trigger."  
"But that's lacrosse. It's a pretty violent game if you hadn't noticed."  
"Well, it's gonna be a lot more violent if you end up killing someone on the field. You can't play Saturday. You're gonna have to get out of the game." I tell Scott leaning against the wall.  
"But I'm first line!" he counters.  
"Not anymore." Stiles sighs.

* * *

The rest of the day passes by in a blur, and I find myself in Scott's room while he flops down on his bed.  
Ms. McCall comes knocking on the door, "Hey guys. Late shift again. But I am taking Saturday off to see your first game Scott."  
"No, mom, you can't." Scott says sulking.  
"Oh no, I can and I will. Come on, one shift isn't gonna break us… Completely." Melissa walks into the room and looks down on Scott and me.  
"Hey, what's wrong with your eyes? You both look like you haven't slept in days."  
"Oh, uh, it's nothing. Just stressed." Scott says as he leans up on his forearms.  
"Just stressed? Ms. McCall inquirers, "Nothing else?"  
"Homework." I add in, smiling up at her.  
"I mean, it's not like you're on drugs or anything. Right?"  
"Right now?" Scott asks and my head snap over to look at him with wide eyes.  
"Right now? I'm sorry, what do you mean "right now"? Have you ever taken drugs?" Ms. McCall asks looking from Scott to me.  
Scott and I share a look before turning to his mom and ask at the same time, "Have you?" Her jaw drops and she looks at us in disbelief before turning to walk out of the room, "Get some sleep. And you're free to stay over if you want Thea."  
"Thanks!" I yell after her before turning back to Scott. "I just realized I forgot my backpack by the lacrosse fields…"  
"Someone probably brought it back to the office at school. Scott says while walking over to his desk just as he get a videocall from Stiles.

"What did you find out?" He asks Stiles.  
 _"Well it's bad. Jackson's got a separated shoulder."  
_ "Because of me?" Scott sighs.  
I scoff and answer at the same time as Stiles. "Because he's a tool."  
 _"Oh! Hey Thea!"_ I just smile and wave at him.  
"But is he gonna play?" Scott asks.  
 _"Well they don't know yet. Now they're just counting on you for Saturday."  
_ Scott sighs and looks down, so I walk over and put my hand on his shoulder. Stiles just stares at us without saying anything before he starts typing.  
 _"It looks like…"_ then the screen freezes.  
"What?" Scott asks, "It looks like what? Damn it.."  
 _"Someone's behind you."_ The text pop up on the screen.  
Suddenly Scott is pinned to the wall by Derek, "I saw you on the field."  
"Wha – What are you talking about?" Scott stutters.  
"You shifted in front of them!" Derek yells, "If they find out what you are, they find out about me, about Thea. About all of us. And then it's not just the hunters after us, it's everyone."  
"They didn't see anything! I-I swear, Thea and Stiles got me off the field!" Scott struggles out.  
"And they won't see anything! Because if you even try to play in that game on Saturday – I'm gonna kill you myself." Derek whispers harshly before he turns to me, his eyes soften a fraction before he disappears out of the room.  
"You ok Scotty?" I ask as I walk over to him.  
"Yeah… Yeah, I'm fine" he says while breathing heavily, "You gonna stay here tonight?"  
"No I should probably get home, but I'll see you tomorrow!" I give him a hug before heading back to my house across the street.

* * *

When I get to the front door, I noticed my alarm is turned off, but the door is still locked. "What the…" I mutter quietly as I turn the key and walk inside. The house is completely silent, so I take off my shoes and head up to my bedroom.  
Nothing seems out of place, and I can't catch a scent so I just shrug it off and head to my closet to find a towel and pj's. I take a long relaxing shower before brushing my teeth and getting dressed in my pj's.  
I get back in my bedroom and see my backpack on top of my bed.  
"You forgot it by the field." Derek says from behind me. I jump and turn around, "Don't scare me like that! I couldn't even sense your presence in the room!"  
He just smirks and looks down at me, "You did good today. With Scott."  
I look up at him and smile softly, "Thanks. And thanks for bringing me my backpack."

We just stare at eachother silently for a few seconds, then Derek wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me to him.  
I gasp at the close proximity and can feel my cheeks flush. "Wh-what are you doing?"  
Derek doesn't say anything. He leans down slowly and look me in my eyes like he's searching for something.  
Then he closes the distance and capture my lips in a soft but demanding kiss. My eyes closes immediately and I wrap my arms around his neck to pull him closer. Derek nibbles on my bottom lip and I let out a soft sigh, running my hands up his neck and grab his hair, pulling it softly.  
Derek's grip on my waist tightens and he growls in approval. I feel his tongue slide against my bottom lip, and I open my mouth slightly, letting Derek slide his tongue into my mouth. I feel his tongue rub against mine as he dominates the kiss.  
I pull away and take in a much-needed breath; my heart is pounding in my chest. Derek runs his hand softly up and down my sides as he leans down to trail open-mouthed kisses down my neck. When he gets to the juncture where my neck and shoulder meets, he nibbles and suck on the spot. "Derek…" I breathe his name out. He growls before sucking harshly on my newfound soft spot and I let out a moan.  
Derek kisses his way up my neck and along my jawline before he gives me a soft kiss and leans his forehead against mine.

"Wow…" I say after a few seconds. We're both breathing heavily. Derek chuckles and picks me up, carrying me to my bed. He lifts the blanket and puts me down carefully before covering me. He looks down at me with soft eyes, "You should get some sleep." Derek leans down to kiss my forehead and I sigh in content. When he turns to leave, I grab the sleeve of his leather jacket.  
"Stay?" I ask quietly.  
Derek looks at me for a few seconds before he nods. He shrugs off his leather jacket and take off his shoes before laying down on top of my blanket. I snuggle closer to him and lay my head on his chest while he wrap his arms around me.  
"Goodnight Derek."  
"Goodnight Thea."


	4. Chapter 3

I'm walking through the halls with Allison before math class, "So are you gonna be at the game on Saturday?" She asks.  
"I'm not sure yet, probably. Stiles might need some company sitting on the bench." I reply as we head down the stairs.  
We spot Scott at the bottom, "Hey Scott." We say at the same time.  
"Hey you two." He smiles at us.  
"You busy?" Allison inquirers.  
"No no, it's just, uhm my mom, she's nothing. I mean, it's nothing. Uhm, I'm never busy for you." Scott says looking at Allison.  
"I like the sound of that. I have to run to French class, but I wanted you to know that I'm coming to see you play tomorrow."  
"You are?" Scott asked wide eyed.  
"Yes, and we're all going out afterwards. You, me, Lydia, Jackson. It's gonna be great! Tell Stiles to come too. You should come as well Thea! Uhm, save me a seat at lunch. I gotta go." She gives me and Scott a smile before heading off to her class.  
"You know you can't play that game Scott." I informed as we walk to math class.  
"I know… But I can't just not play! God…" Scott sighs. I look at him with an apologetic expression as I take my seat beside him just as the bell rings.

I zone out completely during math class, and think back to this morning.

* * *

 _I wake up to the ringing of my alarm, and reach for my phone to snooze it for another 10 minutes. I snuggle back into my pillow and try to fall asleep again. When I notice it's moving, my brows furrow and I reach my hand out to squeeze it. "What are you doing?" a deep husky voice asks. My eyes widen as I remember last night and that Derek stayed over. I lift my head to look at him and realize sometime during the night Derek lost his shirt, and I somehow ended up sprawled on top of him. "Uhm. Morning." I say trying to look anywhere but at his muscular chest. Derek chuckles, "Morning."  
"Oh! I just remembered something!" I exclaim and Derek raises an eyebrow at me. "What is it?"  
"Should I be worried about how you know the code to my alarm system?" I ask with a raised brow. He looks at me for a few seconds before replying, "No." "Did you obtain it legally?" "No." I blink a few times before I shrug, "Ok." I give him a peck on his cheek before getting up. "Where are you going?" Derek inquirers, looking at me from head to toe. I blush slightly under his gaze, "Shower. Then I'll drive you home before I go to school. Sounds good?" Derek just nods once and I walk to my closet to grab what I need._

 _I take a quick shower, get dressed and do my makeup before walking back into my bedroom._  
 _Derek stands with his back turned against me about to put his shirt on._  
 _"Your tattoo…" I whisper mildly shocked. Derek turns to look at me as he's done putting his shirt on, "It's called a triple spiral or a…"_  
 _"Triskelion." I finish as I walk over to him and raise the left sleeve of my leather jacket to show him my wrist, where there's a small triskelion tattoo._  
 _"It's the first tattoo I got. Dad gave it to me on my 16_

 _th birthday. It's sort of a tradition in my family to get your first tattoo on your 16th birthday. Now I have four." I say with a smile on my face._

 _Derek grabs my wrist and traces the tattoo softly with his thumb, "What does yours stand for?" He asks quietly._  
 _"It has two meanings for me actually. Alpha, Beta, Omega. But also Past, Present, Future. What is yours?" I look up at Derek to find him already looking at me with a soft expression. "Alpha, Beta, Omega."_  
 _I smile up at him, and he tucks a loose strand of my hair behind my ear._  
 _My heart rate picks up as he leans down slowly looking from my eyes to my lips and back to my eyes, as to ask for permission. I answer by standing up on my toes and press my lips against his._

 _The kiss starts soft and slow. I reach my arms up to wrap around Derek's neck, as his hands grabs my hips to pull me closer to him._  
 _I nibble on Derek's bottom lip and he lets out a groan. I smile against his lips and pull away to press a firm kiss on his slightly scruffy jawline, before trailing kisses down his neck. Derek's right hand grabs my hair softly while his left stays at my hip, rubbing circles on the exposed skin. I nibble the juncture where his neck and shoulder meets before I suck down hard on the spot._  
 _Derek lets out a low growl and his hands tightens their hold on me. He pulls my hair softly and I moan against his skin. I can feel my body heating up and my heart pounding in my chest. I know my eyes have changed to my wolf, but at this moment, I don't care. Derek pulls me away from his neck, only to crash his lips against mine. He licks at my bottom lip, and I grant him access immediately, sliding my hands from his hair, down his neck and chest before stopping at his hard abs. I rub my thumbs against the ridges and I can feel the muscles ripple under my touch. I can feel myself running out of air and Derek must have noticed. He pulls away and leans his forehead against mine, both of us breathing heavily._

 _I open my eyes slowly to look into Derek's eyes, which are a beautiful electric blue._  
 _His eyes widen, no doubt because of my amber and red eyes. I close my eyes again and focus on calming down.  
When I open them again I see Derek's eyes back to his pale green, and I know mine are back to their normal icy blue._  
 _"Your eyes…" He says in a deep husky voice._  
 _"Yeah…" I breathe out, "I'll tell you about how it happened later." I say with a sad smile. Derek nods and places a soft kiss on the top of my head.  
"I need to talk to you about something later as well. But right now, you have about twenty minutes before school starts." He says as he goes to put on his shoes and leather jacket._  
 _My eyes widen and I sling my backpack over my shoulder, grab Derek's hand and all but drag him down to the kitchen where the door to the garage is. I type in the code and unlock the door, walk into the garage and turn on the lights._  
 _"Take your pick." I say with a smirk on my face as Derek steps into the garage. His eyes widen as he looks at my cars and motorcycle. "These are yours?" He asks as he walks over to my Camaro. I run back to the kitchen to grab the keys from the counter. "Catch." I say when I get back in the garage and toss Derek the keys. He raises a brow at me. "I don't know the way to your house. Back it out while I lock up." Derek doesn't need to be told twice and gets in the car while I hit the switch for the door. I lock up and type in the codes for both my house and garage before I get in the passenger seat._

 _The ride to his house is silent, but it's not awkward._  
 _When we reach his house, I tense up a bit at the sight of the burnt down remains. Derek glances over at me as he stops the car, "You ok?"_  
 _I look back at him and give him a tiny smile, "Yeah, I'm fine."_  
 _We get out of the car and I walk over to where Derek stands by the driver's side._  
 _Derek leans down and gives me a soft kiss. "I'll see to you later Thea." The sound of my name coming from his lips sends a shiver down my spine. By the smirk on his face, it didn't go unnoticed by him, and I can feel my cheeks blush._  
 _"I'll see you later Derek." I give him a peck on his cheek and get in my car._  
 _Derek watches as I drive away, and I can't help the grin that stretches across my face.  
_

* * *

The sound of the bell ringing brings me out of my thoughts, and I gather my books. I follow Scott out of the classroom. We put our books in our lockers, and just as we lock them up, Stiles comes and drags us after him. "Come here. Tell me what they're saying. Can you hear them?" He asks pointing to where the sheriff is talking to the principal. I listen in and answer at the same time as Scott, "Curfew because of the body."  
"Unbelievable!" Stiles exclaims, "My dad's out looking for a rabid animal, while the jerk-off who actually killed the girl is just hanging out, doing whatever he wants."  
"Well, you can't exactly tell your dad the truth about Derek." Scott answers.  
I furrow my brows in confusion, "What does Derek have to do with this?"  
"I can do something." Stiles says, ignoring my question.  
"Like what?" Scott asks.  
"Find the other half of the body." Stiles says like it's the most obvious thing in the world, then walks off.  
"Are you kidding me?" Scott exclaims. We then notice Lydia introducing some guy from the lacrosse team to Allison, and Scott walks over to her completely ignoring me. _'Well then… I'll just go to my next class.'_

The rest of the day passes by quickly and I haven't heard anything from Stiles or Scott. When I get home, I make myself some food before I do my homework.

I must have fallen asleep by my desk because I'm woken up by the sound of my phone ringing.  
"Yeah?" I answer groggily.  
 _"Thea, get to the Hale house. Now. Don't drive!"_ Stiles hurries out before he hangs up. "What the hell?" I ask out loud.  
My hair is a mess so I put it in a high ponytail before running downstairs to put on my boots and leather jacket. I start running through the woods in the direction of the Hale house as I try to catch Stiles's scent. 

I find Stiles hiding behind a tree watching as the sheriff brings out Derek in handcuffs and put him in the back of the police car.  
"What the hell Stiles?!" I whisper harshly. Stiles jumps and turns around. He grabs my hand and drags me over to the car, looking around to see if anyone noticed us.  
He opens the passenger door, push me in and sits down on my lap.  
"Dude, get off!" I say but Stiles just ignores me and turns to Derek,  
"Okay, just so you know, I'm not afraid of you." I scoff and Derek glares at Stiles. "Okay, maybe I am. Doesn't matter. I just wanna know something. The girl you killed,"  
I cut off Stiles's sentence, "You don't know that. What makes you so sure he killed her?"  
He turns to look at me, "I'll tell you later," and then he turns back to Derek. "Anyways, the girl you killed – she was a werewolf. She was a different kind, wasn't she? I mean, she could turn herself into an actual wolf, and I know Scott and Thea can't do that. Is that why you killed her?" Stiles asks Derek.

"Why are you so worried about me when it's your friend who's the problem? When he shifts on the field, what do you think they're gonna do. Just keep cheering him on? I can't stop him from playing, but you can." Derek leans forward and glares at Stiles, "And trust me – you want to." He looks over at me and his eyes soften before he leans back in his seat. 

Suddenly Stiles is pulled off my lap and my eyes widen, I look at Derek and give him a soft smile before I'm pulled out of the car as well.

"What the hell do you two think you're doing?" Sheriff Stilinski asks us.  
"I'm just trying to help!" Stiles says.  
"Okay, well how about you help me understand exactly how you came across this."  
Stiles sighs, "We were looking for Scott's inhaler." I zone out their conversation and look over at Derek who's already staring at me. We keep our eyes locked at each other. My brows furrow as I start thinking of how to fix this. I sigh heavily, but the I realize I know just who to call and a smirk finds it's way to my face. Derek looks confused and I just mouth 'I'll get you out' to him. He raises his brow at me but I just give him a smile.

I turn my head back to the sheriff, "Get the hell out of here you two," He says looking from Stiles to me. "Absolutely!" Stiles says while I peck the sheriff on his cheek and say, "Yes sir!"

We run over to where Scott is by Stiles's jeep. "Care to explain to me why you two got Derek arrested?" I ask the boys.  
"We found the other half of the body buried besides his house." Scott informs me.  
"And you are 100% sure that Derek is the killer?"  
"Yes." They both say. I sigh and run a hand down my face.  
"Ok, well I have some errands to run. I'll see you two later." I give them a hug before I run off. 

* * *

When I get home, I run up to my room and sit down by my desk. I turn on my laptop and while waiting for it to boot up I call dad.  
 _"Sweetie? What's wrong? You never call me at this time."_ Dad says in a worried tone.  
"Dad, I need your help…" I proceed to tell him everything that happened. About the body, and how Scott and Stiles got Derek arrested.  
 _"Tsk, stupid boys. I'll make a call to the medical examiner and tell him to hurry up, and this is what you'll do…."_

And that's how I find myself at the Beacon County Sheriff's Station.  
I walk over to the reception desk with a sweet smile on my face.  
"Hey Tara!" She looks up and smiles at me.  
"Thea, the sheriff isn't here at the moment." She says slightly confused.  
"Oh, I know. I'm actually here to talk to Derek Hale on the behalf of my father ADA Alaric Carter." I smile innocently at her and hand her one on my dad's business cards, her eyes widen. "You see, the Sacramento DA's office contacted him about the arrest and he did some research. They think there are too many loose ends to tie up, for Derek to be held as the only suspect. The Hale property is huge, not to mention in the middle of the woods. Anyone could just walk right in without being noticed. Now, the medical examiner will be finished going over the body soon. And after you let me in to see Derek, I'll let you talk to my father so he can explain further, after I tell him you were most helpful of course." I give her a sweet smile.  
Tara looks horrified, but stands up and leads me to the holding cells.  
I pull out my phone and call dad as we walk, he answers quickly. _  
"Thea. I'm guessing everything went well."  
_ I smirk, "Oh yes, Tara here was most helpful. I'm sure you want to thank her for saving you the trouble of flying in."  
 _"Yes, I'll talk to you later Thea. Hand Tara the phone."_ Tara unlocks the door that leads to the holding cells and I hand her my phone before walking in.

* * *

Derek looks shocked to see me, but I just smile at him. "How did you get in here? I'm not supposed to be allowed visitors."  
"I just made a phone call." I answer vaguely with a smirk on my face. "You'll be out soon." Derek raises a brow, but doesn't question me.  
I walk over to his cell, and Derek stands up and walks forward. "I'm sorry about Scott and Stiles. They're idiots." I say as I grab his hand through the steel bars.  
Derek sighs as he starts rubbing soothing circles into my hand, "Tell me something I don't know." We step away from the cell as we hear footsteps approaching. 

The sheriff walks in and come to a stop in front of me. He crosses his arms at his chest, raises a brow. "Thea."  
I smile brightly at him, "Hello Mr. Stilinski."  
He sighs, shakes his head and hands me my phone, "I don't know what terrifies me the most. The fact that you and Alaric decided to team up against one of my deputies, or that you two were able to speed up the entire investigation." Then he turns to Derek and walks to unlock his cell, "The report from the medical examiner came back, animal hair was found on the body along with bite marks. We're very sorry for the inconvenience. I just need you to fill out some paperwork and you're free to go. Again, we're very sorry."  
Derek just nods and walks out of the cell.  
I go to follow him, but the sheriff stops me. "Not so fast young lady."  
I sigh and look up at him, "I'm in trouble, aren't I?"  
"Oh yes. Interfering with a police investigation has not been one of your most brilliant ideas. But seeing as Alaric was in on it, I can't exactly do anything about it. Just… please don't do it again Thea."  
I smile brightly at him and pecks his cheek, "I won't! Will I see you at the game tonight?"  
"Yeah, I just have to finish up here. Now get out of here."  
"Yes sir!" I run out and head to the reception area to wait for Derek. 

He walks out five minutes later with Tara who keep apologizing.  
"Need a ride?" I smile at him. Derek looks at me and just nods.

When we get in my car, Derek turns to me. "Who's Alaric?" He asks with a brow raised.  
I give him a small smile, "ADA Alaric Carter. Also known as my father. He used to work at the DA's office in Sacramento. Now he works in New York."  
"So you got two DA's offices involved?" Derek asks incredulously.  
I scoff, "Of course not. I just called dad, who then called in a favor with the medical examiner here in Beacon Hills. The rest is just something we cooked up on the go. I'm actually surprised how well it all worked out."  
Derek looks at me with an unreadable expression and I tilt my head in confusion, "What?" Derek doesn't say anything, he just leans over to smash his lips against mine. I gasp in surprise, and Derek slides his tongue between my lips and rub it against mine. It doesn't take long before we both run out of breath and have to pull back.  
I smile brightly, "If this is the response I get, I'll have to start scheming more often."  
Derek chuckles and gives me a soft peck. "I'll be over after the game tonight. We still have a lot to talk about."  
"I know." I sigh as I buckle up and start the car. 

* * *

****

**Derek Hale**

As we get to the school, I give Thea a short kiss before she runs off to meet up with Scott's mom and Stiles's dad.  
I smile slightly as I watch her tiny frame practically dancing across the parking lot.  
She's the most beautiful little thing I have ever laid my eyes on, and apparently a force to be reckoned with judging by the stunt she pulled with the sheriff's department.  
I know I told her I couldn't give her what a mate is supposed to. But I want to. I want _her._ The feeling of her hands in my hair and her lips on my skin was enough to make me want to claim her on the spot. Her tiny frame seems so fragile, yet there's this power radiating off of her.  
I sigh deeply. _'I just hope that after our talk tonight she won't push me away.'_

The lacrosse game finished without any problems. It still annoys me to no end how Scott so willingly put not only himself in danger, but also me and Thea.

When I get to Thea's place, I climb up on the balcony only to stop in my track at the sight in front of me. I can see her through the window, laying stomach down on her bed. Her feet up waving in the air, in her pj's with her hair tied on top of her head. She has a pen sticking out of her mouth and her brows are furrowed as she's looking down at what seems to be a chemistry book.

She looks up and takes a sniff of the air then turns to look at me. She smiles brightly at me and I can feel a smile tugging at my own lips.  
I open the door and walk in just as Thea sit up on her knees to put her books and pen away.  
I sit down beside her on her bed and reach my hand out to cup her cheek. She leans into my touch and I can hear a soft sigh escape her delicate lips. "Hi." She whispers as she looks up at me.  
"Hi." I answer, looking at her beautiful face.  
"You hungry? I was just about to order some food."  
"Sounds good. What are you in the mood for?" I ask her.  
"Hmm… beef curry!" She exclaims. I chuckle, "Chinese it is."

When the food arrives, we sit down on the sofa in the living room.  
"So, you want to tell me your story first, or should I go first?" Thea asks me as she put the food on the table.  
I sigh and think about it for a few seconds before I decide, "You go first."  
She looks at me and gives me a sad smile. "Ok. Well, I used to live in Sacramento with my parents and my two siblings. Lena, my big sister was a lot older, thirteen years to be exact. Then there was Frederic, he was my twin. Both my parents were lawyers and worked at the DA's office and Lena was just about to finish med school. Me and Fred were just about to finish 7th grade." She pauses to look at me before she continues, "Fred was my best friend. Actually he was my only friend." She chuckles, "We did everything together. If one of us got in trouble, we always dragged the other down with us or we would bail each other out.

"Mom and dad were both alphas. At first, it was just dad, but over the years, some of his power got transferred to mom. I think it had something to do with being an alpha's mate." Thea lets out a deep sigh and I can see tears gathering in her eyes. I wrap my arms around her and pull her closer, hoping to bring her some comfort as she continues her story.

"It was a Saturday afternoon, I had a judo tournament and my dad went with me. Fred would have come too, but he had a math test to make up so he had to stay home and study.  
Lena was also home for the weekend wanting to help Fred out. It didn't bother me that it was just dad who came to watch my tournament. That was our thing, the one thing that was just for me and dad." Thea takes a deep breath, "I was on my last sparring match when I felt it. The increase of my power. I thought nothing of it at first, but then the pain came. It was so intense I fell to the floor and I could barely breathe. I knew it then, something was wrong with Fred."

"Dad rushed over to me, but I could see he was also in pain. He carried me out to the car and we hurried home only to find the house consumed by fire. I can still remember the look on dad's face. He looked so broken. He lost his mate and two of his children in that fire."

I tighten my grip on Thea, knowing the pain of losing family. I'm surprised how similar our stories is. She smiles up at me and I can see the tear stains on her cheeks.  
"Dad was never the same after that. He shut himself off in a way. It took months before he could even look at me, since I resemble my mother so much. I didn't have any friends besides Fred, so I spent most of my time on martial arts and my cars. The Camaro was actually Fred's. He would have been so pissed if I hadn't finished it." She laughs a bit.  
"Anyways, as time went on, things got a little better. Dad would look at me again and we could keep a normal conversation. We never brought up the fire though; it was like an unspoken rule. Earlier this year, dad got a job offer in New York. We decided that I should move to Beacon Hills, so we could both get a little break. And since dad is good friends with the sheriff and Ms. McCall, those two agreed to keep an eye on me." Thea's face brightens slightly,  
"But yeah, about my eyes! Dad has the same, just on opposite sides. We're not as strong as an alpha, but still stronger than a beta. I guess you could say we're a little bit of both."

Thea nuzzles her face into the crook of my neck and breathes in heavily, taking in my scent. I can feel her body relaxing in my arms and I smile at the thought of being able to make my mate feel better. I lay a kiss on the top of her head.

"I guess it's my turn now…" I say with a sigh. I then proceed to tell her everything. About my family, Kate and the fire. About Laura and the alpha. Everything that has lead up to now.  
Thea listens carefully to every word I say without interrupting.

When I finish, I glance down at Thea only to find her already looking at me with understanding in her eyes. I furrow my brows in confusion, but she doesn't say anything. Instead she straddles my lap, wrap hear arms around my neck and pull me closer. She nuzzles my cheek and starts purring.  
My eyes widen in surprise at the sound, but I can feel my whole body relaxing. I wrap my arms tightly around her, enjoying the comfort of having my mate accept everything about me so easily.

* * *

Thea breaks away after a few minutes and I look at her in confusion.  
"I know you said you couldn't do this whole mate thing, that you didn't know how. But, I would like to give it a try. I will be possessive, and annoying, and probably more trouble than I'm worth. But I…" I cut of her rambling by crashing my lips to hers.

Thea reacts immediately, kissing me back just as passionately while tugging at my hair. I run my hands down her sides and grab her hips pulling her as close as possible, leaving no space between us.  
I lean down to kiss and nip at Thea's neck and she lets out a soft moan. I can smell her arousal, and growl lowly in the back of my throat.

I flip us over so Thea is laying on the couch with me on top of her. She wraps her legs around me while pulling my face from her neck, only to crash her lips to mine again. She nibbles and sucks on my bottom lip, and I grind my hips into hers. "Derek…" She says my name in a moan.  
"You smell so good little mate." I say, my voice husky with lust.  
Thea runs her hands down my chest and abs, before she grabs the hem of my Henley shirt and pulls it up. I lean back on my knees to pull it over my head.

I look down at Thea to find her staring at me with her wolf's unique eyes that show lust and admiration. Thea sits up and push me down on the couch. She leans down and starts kissing my neck softly before sucking down hard.

I know it's too soon to take things further, so reluctantly I sit up and push Thea away softly.  
She looks at me, her expression a mix of confusion and hurt.  
I pull her into an embrace, "Trust me, I want this. I will claim you as mine, just not yet."  
Thea let's out a sigh of relief and snuggles in closer to me. I lean down to kiss her softly and whisper against her lips, "My beautiful little mate."  
I stand up with Thea in my arms and walk back to her bedroom.  
I put her gently down on her bed, lay down beside her and pull the blanket over us.  
Thea snuggles in closer to me and I soon fall asleep with my mate in my arms.


	5. Chapter 4

**Hi! Sorry for the long wait. Life has been hectic the last few months. Anyways! Thanks for the reviews, follows and favs. Once christmas is over I'll start updating more regularly.  
** **Also, this story is rated M for a reason. Just putting that out there so you've been warned. :)**

* * *

My phone ringing wakes me up. I groan and stretch to get it from my nightstand, "Yeah?" I answer tiredly without checking who's calling.

" _Hey, it's Scott. Uhm, I need to talk to you. Like soon_." Scott rambles on.

"What happened?" I ask.

" _Can I get a ride from you to school today, and we'll just talk there. Kind of need Stiles to be there as well._ "

"Sure Scotty. Be outside at 7:30." I hang up and roll over in my bed, coming face to face with Derek.

"Morning." I yawn and snuggle into his bare chest, listening to his soothing heartbeat.

Derek chuckles and kisses the top of my head. "Morning."

"I don't want to get up." I pout.

"It's only six. We still have some time before you need to get ready for school, we can stay in bed for a while." Derek informs me.

"Good." I say as I continue to snuggle into his chest.

Derek wraps his arms around me tightly and rolls over on his back, bringing me with him so I'm lying on top of him.  
I just now realize that he's only in his boxer briefs. He must have undressed after I fell asleep. Not that I mind.

Deciding to tease Derek, I put one leg on each side of him, efficiently straddling him. I push myself up in a sitting position and put my hands on either side of his head, leaning down to capture his lips in a rough kiss.

Derek's hands grab my waist as he responds to the kiss immediately, his tongue slipping past my lips to tangle with my own.

I can feel my wolf wanting to come out, and I let out a low growl. I suddenly have the urge to just, _taste_ him. I pull away from the kiss to lean against Derek's shoulder, panting heavily.

"Derek…" I whisper breathlessly and lean back up so I can look at him. My amber and crimson eyes meet his electric blue ones and I lean back down to capture Derek's lips again, nibbling at his bottom lip. His right hand slides down to grab my hip tightly, while his left goes in my hair, pulling softly at the strands.

I let out a soft moan at the feeling, and Derek growls possessively.

I make my way down his jawline, to his neck, leaving open mouth kisses and soft nibbles.  
Derek tightens his grip on me, and I can feel his bulge straining against his boxers. I grind against him while my fingers finds their way to his hair.  
Derek groans and moves to grind against my core again.

I moan at the feeling, the friction sending unfamiliar yet delicious shivers through my body.  
"We should stop before we do something you'll regret." Derek says reluctantly.  
I lean back so I'm sitting upright with my hands splayed over his pecs. "I want to try something." I ask, biting my lip nervously.  
"What?" Derek asks, his brows furrowed in confusion.  
"Just.. don't move." I say as I lean down and start kissing his neck again.

My hands slide down to his abs, feeling every ridge of his muscles before trailing down to the hem of his boxers.

Derek grabs my wrists, making me look up at him. "Thea, you don't have to.."  
"I want to." I cut him off, my tone firm. His eyes is searching mine, seeming to look for any kind of doubt or uncertainty, but I know all they show is lust and determination.

After a few seconds, Derek nods and slowly loosens the grip on my wrists.  
I lean down to peck his lips before moving down to his neck again, nibbling on the juncture between his neck and shoulder.

Derek goes to grab my waist, but I push his hands away, leaving open mouthed kisses as I make my way further down his body.

When I get to his boxers, I grab the hem and look up at Derek. His chest is moving with every heavy breath he takes, as he looks at me for a few seconds before raising his hips so I can slide his boxers off.

He's big. That's the first thing that comes to mind as I look at him with slightly wide eyes. I don't really have anything to compare him to, but looking down at his long, thick erection, I just know that he is very well endowed.

I let out a shaky breath as I reach out, my hand encircling his cock.  
Derek growls and his hands goes to fist the sheets of my bed.  
I look up at him through hooded eyes and I slowly start sliding my hand up and down his length.

When I look down at him again, a drop of precum appears on his tip. I slide my thumb over it, spreading the wetness down his shaft. Derek groans loudly and his hips jerks forward, pressing his erection further into my hand.  
His response to my touch spurs me on, and I lean down. Keeping eye contact, I carefully lick his tip, my tongue sliding over his slit, before I engulf him in my mouth.

He tastes salty, musky, and something that is just… Derek. I moan at the taste of him, swirling my tongue around his tip before taking in more of him, using my hand on what I can't fit in my mouth.

I let him slide out of my mouth only to flatten my tongue at his base, licking slowly up a prominent vein before swirling my tongue around his tip.

I take him in my mouth again, slowly sliding down as far as I can before backing slowly up again.

Derek's hand grabs my hair tightly, groaning as he twists his fingers in the strands. He guides me up and down his length, careful not to choke me.

I hollow my cheeks, sucking harder as I start to move faster.  
"Thea" My name is coming out as a deep growl, and I look up at him. His eyes flash blue and I let mine flash as well, showing him that both my human and wolf side are enjoying this.

Derek's mix of growls and grunts tells me he's close, and instead of backing away, I keep going.

I swirl my tongue around his tip, moaning at the taste of him. The vibrations makes Derek tense. I take him deep in, sucking hard and it sends him over the edge with a shout of my name. His erection pulses before releasing his warm musky seed in my mouth.

I keep still, only moving my hand slowly, letting him finish before I sit back on my knees and swallow.

I lick my lips and look at Derek who has his eyes closed, and is breathing heavily.

He opens his eyes to look at me, "That was…"  
I smirk at him, laying back down in his arms. Derek gives me a kiss on the top of my head and I let out a content sigh.

"I'm gonna have a quick shower and get ready for school, Scott will be over soon." I say as I sit up in bed.

Derek sits up with me and wraps his arms around be from behind. He leans his head down to the crook of my neck, taking in a whiff of my scent, before kissing the juncture.  
"I have to get home, but I'll see you later. Ok?"  
"Ok." I say as I turn my head to give him a swift peck on his lips, before I run off to my bathroom.

* * *

I take a shower, get dressed and do my make-up as usual. Thinking back to what just happened between Derek and me, I can't help but blush.

I am completely unexperienced when it comes to anything sexual, but he seemed to enjoy it. And I don't regret it one bit. It might be soon, but it left both my wolf and I content for now.

I pack my bag and head downstairs to make a sandwich for breakfast. I eat quickly, put on my boots, grab my keys, head out to the garage, and lock up the house.  
I get in my Camaro and back it out of the garage before going to turn on the alarm.

I look at the time and see it's 7:28 am. Perfect timing, so I drive over to the McCall house across the street and honk to let Scott know I'm waiting for him.

Scott comes stumbling out of the house after a few seconds and gets in the passenger seat.

"Thanks for giving me a ride." He says with a smile.  
"No problem buddy. So what did you wanna talk about?"  
"Let's wait till we meet up with Stiles at school. It's bad. Really bad."  
I glance over at him as I pull out of his driveway, "Sure."

After a few minutes of silence Scott starts to sniff the air and furrows his brows. "Why do you smell like Derek?"

My eyes widen abit, "Uh, he was over earlier. Asking questions since I'm a born wolf too."  
Scott looks at me for a few seconds before nodding his head.  
I know he doesn't believe me, since he probably listened to my heartbeat, but I'll deal with that later.

When we get to school and meet up with Stiles, Scott tells us about the dream he had about killing Allison.

"So you killed her?" Stiles asks as he pulls the door open for us.  
" I don't know. I just woke up. I was sweating like crazy, and I couldn't breathe. I've never had a dream where I woke up like that before." Scott says.

"Really? I have. It usually ends a little differently." Stiles answers.  
I scrunch up my nose in disgust, "Eww. Stiles, please don't."  
"A, I meant I've never had a dream that felt that real, and B, never give us that much detail about you in bed again." Scott says looking slightly disturbed.  
"Noted. Let me take a guess here -"

Scott interrupts Stiles's sentence, "No. I know you think it has something to do with me going out with Allison tomorrow, like I'm gonna lose control and rip her throat out."  
"No, of course not!" Stiles says. I turn to give him a look that says "Really?"  
"Ok. Yeah, that's totally it." Scott looks depressed at Stiles's words, so he continues, "Hey, come on. It's gonna be fine, all right? Personally, I think you're handling this pretty freakin' amazingly. You know, other than Thea, it's not like there's a lycanthropy for beginners class you can take."

"Hey don't look at me; I have no clue where to start teaching anyone about control." I say holding my hands up.  
"Yeah not a class, but maybe a teacher." Scott says, and I know where this is going.

"Who, Derek?!" Stiles exclaims as he smacks Scott at the back of his head, "Are you forgetting the part where we got him tossed in jail?"  
"Yeah, I know. But chasing her, dragging her to the back of the bus, it felt so real."  
"How real?" Me and Stiles asks at the same time.  
"Like it actually happened." Scott answers as we walk out the doors.  
We look up to see the bloody school bus and the police working on the scene.  
"I think it did." Stiles says.

* * *

We rush back into the hallway and we're trying to calm Scott down, "She's probably fine." Stiles and I say at the same time.

"She's not answering my texts, guys!" Scott replies, looking around frantically for Allison.  
"You know, it could just be a coincidence, all right? A seriously amazing coincidence." Stiles replies while I nod my head in agreement.

"Just help me find her, okay?" We keep looking around for Allison, and Scott is getting more and more worked up, since we can't find her.

He leans roughly against the lockers and tries to control his breathing before he leans back and slams his fist into the locker. He backs away and is about to leave the school when he slams into Allison.

I let out a breath of relief and drag Stiles with me to chemistry class.

" _Attention students, this is your principal. I know you're all wondering about the incident that occurred last night to one of our busses. While the police work to determine what happened, classes will proceed as scheduled."_ The principal announces over the intercom, and the class let out groans of disapproval.

Scott enters class and sits down at his desk in front of Stiles and I. He turns to us as Mr. Harris is writing some formula at the board.  
"Maybe it was my blood on the door."  
"Could have been animal blood. You know, maybe you caught a rabbit or something." Stiles answers.  
"And did what?"  
"Ate it." I say, amused by the conversation.  
"Raw?" Scott asks, wide eyed.  
"No, you stopped to bake it in a little werewolf oven. I don't know, you're the one who can't remember anything." Stiles says before our chemistry teacher interrupts our conversation.

"Mr. Stilinski, if that's your idea of a hushed whisper, you might want to pull the headphones out every once in a while. I think you, Mr. McCall and Ms. Carter would benefit from a little distance, yes?

"No." Stiles says, but Harris directs him and Scott to different seats.  
"Let me know if the separation anxiety gets to be too much." Harris says and Stiles let out a sarcastic laugh.

"Hey, I think they found something!" The girl sitting next to Scott says as she and the rest of the class gets up to look out the window.  
I get up to look besides Scott and Stiles, just as the paramedics are rushing to the ambulance with a man on a gurney.  
"That's not a rabbit." Scott says.  
Few seconds later, the man gets up, screams, and the whole class jumps back in surprise.

Scott steps back from the window and me and Stiles follow.  
"Ok. This is good, this is good," Stiles says while placing his hand on Scott's shoulder. "He got up, he's not dead. Dead guys can't do that."  
"Guys… I did that." Scott says before Harris directs us all back to our seats to finish class.

* * *

During lunchbreak, we walk to our table as Stiles says "But dreams aren't memories."  
"Then it wasn't a dream. Something happened last night, and I can't remember what." Scott replies, while I'm just munching on my food and listening in on the conversation.  
"What makes you so sure that Derek even has all the answers?" Stiles asks, and I perk up at the name of my mate.  
"Because during the full moon he wasn't changed. He was in total control while I was running around in the middle of the night attacking some totally innocent guy. Now that I think about it, you were in control as well Thea." Scott says.  
"Well yeah, I've already told you that I can control myself just fine. But I've never tried teaching it to others, and it's different for everyone." I reply, munching away on my orange.  
"You don't know that you attacked someone." Stiles says.  
"I don't not know it. I can't go out with Allison. I have to cancel." Scott answers, looking down.  
"No, you're not cancelling ok? You can't just cancel your entire life. We'll figure it out." Stiles says just as Lydia and several others comes to sit with us.

"Figure what out?" She says as she sit down besides Scott.  
"Homework." I reply without missing a beat.  
"And who are you?"  
"Thea." She just keeps looking at me and blinking. "I'm new."  
"Oh." Is all she says before turning away.  
"Why is she sitting with us?" Stiles whispers. Scott and I just shrug our shoulders, clueless.

"Get up." Jackson says to the guy sitting beside Lydia.  
"How come you never ask Danny to get up?" He asks.  
"Because I don't stare at his girlfriend's coin slot." Danny replies before starting to talk about the incident in the school bus, "So I hear they're saying it's some type of animal attack. Probably a cougar."  
"I heard mountain lion." Jackson says.  
"A cougar is a mountain lion." I answer at the same time as Lydia. Then Jackson gives her a look and she says, "Isn't it?"  
"Who cares? The guy's probably some homeless tweaker who's gonna die anyway." Jackson says.  
"Actually, I just found out who it is. Check it out" Stiles says before showing us a newsfeed on his phone.

"I know this guy." Scott says.  
We look at him curiously and Allison asks, "You do?"  
"Yeah, when I used to take the bus back when I lived with my dad. He was the driver."  
"Well, I'm gonna head to my locker and get to class. I'll drive you to work after school Scott?" I ask as I get my things.  
"Yeah, thanks." He answers giving me a small wave.  
I go to throw away the rest of my food before heading out to the hallway.

* * *

The rest of the school day passes by slowly. Art class was such a bore, I regret not signing up for shop class instead.  
Currently I'm sitting in my car reading up on my homework while waiting for Scott to get out.

When he gets in the car, he looks downright miserable.  
"What happened?" I ask as I start the car.  
"The date with Allison has turned out to a group thing. With Jackson and Lydia. We're going bowling, and I suck at bowling!" Scott tells me.  
"You'll be fine! Just try not to let Jackson rile you up. Which he probably will try to do. He seems like a grade A dick." I say as we drive towards the animal clinic. Scott laughs, and the rest of the ride is spent listening to the radio.

After dropping Scott off, I drive home to eat and finish my homework for tomorrow.

After finishing everything and sending a quick mail to my dad about how things are going here, and also asking about the mail he was supposed to send me with information about mates, I'm completely and utterly bored. I could go down to my gym and train for a while, or I could go see Derek.

The latter sounds a lot more tempting so I get my phone and jacket and head downstairs to put my boots on.  
I don't feel like driving, so I run back upstairs to my bedroom and out on my balcony. Luckily the neighbors can't see it, and it leads straight to the forest, so I jump down, landing in a crouch before I take off into the woods.

It doesn't take me long to get to the burnt down Hale house.  
It also doesn't take long before I can sense Derek's presence behind me.  
He wraps his arms around my waist from behind and leans his head down to the crook of my neck.  
"Hi." I say quietly as I lean into his arms, the content feeling I had this morning coming back full force.  
"Hi." Derek replies, leaving a soft kiss on my neck before turning me around in his arms.  
I lean up on my toes to give him a kiss as I wrap my arms around his neck.

Derek goes to deepen the kiss, but I pull back slightly. He frowns, and I just give him another peck before asking, "Did you hear what happened at school?"  
"I did." Derek replies, still seeming distracted by my lips as he keeps glancing down to them.  
"It was the alpha wasn't it?"  
"Yes." He says before leaning his head down, running his nose up from my shoulder to my neck, taking in my scent. When he gets to my ear, he nibbles at the shell. I let out a shaky breath, feeling my body heat up from his ministrations.  
"Scott will probably be here soon." I say, but it's coming out more like a squeak.  
Derek chuckles, and before I know it, he has me thrown over his shoulder and is speeding up to the second floor of his house.

"Derek!" I yell, and place my hands on his back to steady myself.  
Derek chuckles, and once we're in a room that doesn't look too bad compared to the rest of the house, he lets me down slowly.  
I can feel every ridge of his muscles as my body slides down against his until my feet is on the floor.

Derek's hands are on my hips, rubbing circles into the skin along the hem of my jeans. He leans down slowly, and I stand up on my toes to meet him halfway.  
The sound of a car approaching interrupts us. We let out simultaneous growls of annoyance.  
"Stay here." Derek says before he makes his way up to the third floor.

I look around the room I'm in, and there's not really much here. A mattress in the corner with a pillow and blanket, a dresser and a bookcase. I walk over and look through the books, which seems to range from classics to non-fiction about anything and everything.

I'm brought out of my snooping by the sound of a dog barking violently, and eventually the car driving off.  
I walk out of the room and take the stairs two at a time, crashing straight into Derek's strong back once I reach the top. I would have fallen down the stairs if not for Derek's arm shooting out, wrapping tightly around my waist to keep me on my feet.  
"Thanks." I say quietly as I look up at his handsome face.  
"Shh." Derek shushes me before looking out the window again. I look out to see what caught his attention, and I see Scott approaching the house slowly, stopping at the edge of the woods.  
"I know you can hear me." He says as he looks up at the house.  
"I need your help."

Derek sighs in annoyance before letting go of my waist and heads downstairs.  
I follow him downstairs and out the door. Scott doesn't look at all shocked to see me with Derek, he just gives me a tiny smile before looking over at Derek.

"Okay. I know I was part of you getting arrested, and that we basically announced you being here to the hunters. I also don't know what happened to your sister. But I think I did something last night. I had a dream about… someone. But someone else got hurt. And it turns out that part of the dream might have actually happened." Scott explains looking miserable.  
"You think you attacked the driver?" Derek asks with a stoic face.  
"Did you see what I did last night?!" Scott exclaims in an almost accusatory tone.  
"No."  
"Can you at least tell me the truth? Am I gonna hurt someone?"  
"Yes."  
"Could I kill someone?" Scott is looking more and more miserable by the seconds, while Derek's face remains stoic.  
"Yes."  
"Am I gonna kill someone?"  
"Probably. Look, I can show you how to remember. I can show you how to control the shift, even on a full moon. But it's not gonna come for free." Derek says.  
"What do you want?" Scott asks quietly.  
"You'll find out. But for now, I'm gonna give you what you want. Go back to the bus. Go inside. See it, feel it. Let your senses – your sight, smell, touch… let them remember for you." Derek explains to Scott.  
"That's it? Just – just go back?"  
"Do you want to know what happened?"  
"I just want to know if I hurt him."  
"No you don't. You want to know if you'll hurt her." Derek answers before grabbing my hand and we turn to walk back inside the house, but Scott's voice stops us.  
"Thea could you come? Please?" He asks pleadingly.  
I look back at Derek and he gives a short nod.  
"Be careful." He says, letting go of my hand and walks inside, closing the door.

I turn back to Scott and give him a smile.  
"C'mon Scotty! Let's go break into a crime scene!" I say enthusiastically as I jog off into the woods.  
Scott catches up to me, and we slow down to a walk.  
"I'll text Stiles to meet us there." Scott says as he pulls out his phone.  
"Is anything going on with you and Derek? I can literally smell him on you."  
I purse my lips and think about my answer.  
"I'm not really sure how to explain it. I don't understand it fully myself yet either, but I'm getting there. You're not mad are you? I know he's not exactly your favorite person."  
"No, I'm not mad. Just… be careful. Ok? I don't really trust the guy. And Stiles is basically terrified of him." Scott says the last part with a small smile on his face.  
"Yeah, I don't know how to tell him any of this without him freaking out. I guess he'll get used to it eventually though. I hope."

* * *

When we get to the school, we see Stiles's jeeps parked outside the fence. He gets out of his car and starts walking beside us.  
"Hey, no, just me. Someone needs to keep watch." Scott tells us.  
"How come I'm always the guy keeping watch? Can't Thea do it?" Stiles asks as he starts to climb the fence.  
"No. You stay here with her."  
"Okay, why's it starting to feel like you're Batman and I'm Robin? Thea can be like… the female version of Wolverine. Wolverina! Anyways, I don't want to be Robin all the time!" Stiles exclaims looking at Scott.  
"Nobody's Batman and Robin and… Wolverina any of the time!"  
"Not even some of the time?"  
"Just stay here!" Scott says in an annoyed tone.  
"Oh my god, fine." Stiles grabs my hand and drags me back to his jeep grumbling incoherently. I just shake my head in amusement while getting into the passenger seat.

We sit in silence as we wait for Scott, but after a few minutes, we spot a flashlight and Stiles start pressing the horn, signaling for Scott to get the hell out of there.  
Once he gets close to the car, I jump into the backseat.  
Scott jumps in and shuts the door shouting at Stiles to go.  
Stiles quickly backs up his car before turning and heading down the road.  
"Did it work? Did you remember?" We ask Scott simultaneously.  
"Yeah, I was there last night. And the blood, a lot of it was mine."  
"So you did attack him?"  
"No. I saw glowing eyes in the bus, but they weren't mine. It was Derek."  
I almost choke on air hearing Scott blame my mate.  
"I don't think it was Derek." I say, but I get ignored as Stiles continue to ask questions.  
"What about the driver?"  
"I think I was actually trying to protect him."  
"Wait, why would Derek help you remember that he attacked the driver?" Stiles asks incredulously.  
"Exactly! It would be setting himself up. He's not that stupid." I say as I lean back into the seat, crossing my arms across my chest.  
"That's what I don't get." Scott says, sparing me a skeptical glance.  
"It's got to be a pack thing."  
"What do you mean?" Scott asks Stiles.  
"Like an initiation. You do the kill together. Did you guys have anything like that in your pack Thea?"  
"No, but it makes sense I guess. As a sign of loyalty to the pack."  
"Because ripping someone's throat out is a real bonding experience?" Scott asks.  
"Yeah, but you didn't do it. Which means you're not a killer. And it also meanst that – "  
"I can go out with Allison." Scott interrupts Stiles with a smile on his face.  
"I was gonna say it means you won't kill me." Stiles says looking slightly offended.  
"Oh yeah! That too."  
The rest of the drive we spent mostly in silence. Stiles dropped us off at our street before heading home.  
"I'm gonna go get ready to go out. I'll see you tomorrow, ok?" Scott says and gives me a hug.  
"Sure. Have fun! And remember what I said about Jackson." I say before walking over to my house.

I take a quick shower before getting dressed again, deciding to do the rest of my homework for this week while eating a sandwich. I really need to learn how to cook instead of surviving on sandwiches and take out. But I don't have the patience for it.

I finish my homework, and lay down on my bed, hugging the pillow Derek uses when he's here. I breathe in his scent and my eyes close.

* * *

I must have been more tired than I thought, because I'm woken by the sound of rustling outside on the balcony.  
I get off the bed and walk over to look through the window. Spotting Stiles as he climbs over the railing, I roll my eyes and open the door.  
"What are you doing?" I say, my voice raspy from just waking up.  
Stiles's head shoots up and he looks at me panicked.  
"You have to go help Scott! Derek will probably kill him!"  
My brows furrow in confusion, and I brainstorm for various reasons Derek could have to kill Scott.  
"Scott went to accuse him of all the shit that has happened lately, didn't he?"  
"Yeah, that's pretty much it." Stiles replies looking more than a little stressed.  
"Fine. Go home, I'll go make sure Scott doesn't get himself killed." I say before I jump off the balcony and start running through the woods.

I enter the Hale house quietly as Derek finish explaining to Scott about the alpha.  
"- It's you Scott. You're the one he wants."  
I walk to the room left before the stairs, and lean against the doorframe. They both turn to look at me.  
"You knew about the alpha. Why didn't you tell me?" Scott asks as I make my way over to them.  
"You wouldn't have believed me even if I did."  
"Yeah, you're probably right." Scott replies with a smile as he stands up and head to the front door. "I'm gonna go home and get some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow Thea."

As soon as Scott is at the door, I pounce on Derek. I jump and wrap my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist. Derek's hands grabs my upper thighs to keep me steady as I lean my head down and nuzzles the crook of his neck.  
"You ok?" I ask, not moving my face away from his neck.  
"I'm fine." Derek replies as he slides his hands up and grabs my ass.  
I let out a soft growl, nibble playfully at his neck before lifting my head, and kiss him softly.  
All to soon he pulls back and leans his forehead against mine.  
"I need to go see if I can find out more about the alpha." Derek says quietly, and he looks down at me and smirks. "I'll carry you home, seeing as you forgot to put your shoes on." 

* * *

**Drop me a review if you have any questions or just tell me what you think! I've already started on the next chapter, so wont be too long til it's up ;)**


	6. Chapter 5

The sound of a gunshot then a howl echoing through the night was not how I imagined waking up. Especially not followed by the feeling of complete and utter dread coursing through my body.  
I got out of bed, sleep being the last thing on my mind right now. Something is wrong. Very wrong. 

I keep pacing the floor of my bedroom, debating going to figure out why exactly I'm feeling so on edge right now.  
Eventually I decide against it, getting dressed in my work out clothes and heading to the small gym down at the first floor. 

30 minutes later, and the punching bag falls to the floor after I put too much force behind my spinning back kick. Not being bothered to fix it, I run upstairs to take a shower. The water is almost scalding hot as I keep scrubbing my skin almost raw. 

The nagging feeling in my gut doesn't go away even after I'm dressed, so I decide to head out. Being around Derek will most likely put me at ease. Just the thought of him puts a smile on my face. I'm starting to realize that I need Derek more than I thought I would. Hell, I want him. Even if this whole mate situation still confuses me to some degree, I can't help but want to have him in my life. 

The woods is quiet at this time of the night. The only sound coming from the leaves rustling and my own footsteps. Walking up to the burnt Hale house, I listen for his heartbeat, or any sound that indicates that he's here. There's nothing. 

Furrowing my brows in confusion I start heading back home. Then I remember Derek's words from earlier. He was going to search for more clues about the alpha.

With that thought in mind I start running through the woods, wanting to find Derek as soon as possible. 

* * *

His scent leads me to the edge of the preserve, and I feel relief washing over me when I see him, though it's short lived.

"Derek!"  
His head snaps towards me, and I can see his painful expression and beads of sweat forming on his forehead. He doesn't say anything; his breath is ragged and it looks like he's having trouble keeping himself standing. 

I rush over to him, sliding his right arm over my shoulders to help keep him steady as I look at him.  
"What's wrong?"

"I- I was shot," Derek pants the words out "Wolfsbane bullet."

My eyes widen and I carefully take his left arm and roll up the sleeve of his Henley.

" _No!_ " I gasp, looking at the wound in his arm. "We have to get the bullet out!" 

Now normally, I wouldn't complain about Derek's physique. In fact, he's perfect. Literally.  
But having to nearly carry him through the preserve, it's heavy. Really heavy. Even with the added werewolf strength I nearly stumble through the woods.

Getting Derek up the stairs to his room in the Hale house was almost harder than stumbling through the woods. 

As soon as we get there I help him roll up his sleeve again.  
I lean over carefully and kiss him.  
"This is going to hurt." I whisper the words against his lips, and he nods slowly before I lean back again. 

I grab his arm just below the elbow with my left hand, letting my claws grow out on my right.  
I concentrate for a few seconds, and as soon as I see the black veins creeping up my arm I dig my claws into the bullet wound.  
Derek's body tenses up, and a loud growl sounds through the room.  
It doesn't take me long to find the bullet and pull it out.  
As soon as my claws retract from the wound, Derek relaxes again.

I find a couple of water bottles on the dresser in Derek's room. I pull off my sweater; leaving me in my tank top, and pour some water on it to clean the blood off my hand.

* * *

Through the night, I sit at Derek's side. Taking his pain as often as I can without exhausting myself completely, wiping the sweat from his forehead. Anything just to make this more comfortable for him, even if it's just by a little. 

Derek wakes up just as the sun rises. He looks confused for a second before his eyes find mine.  
"Good morning handsome." I whisper as I take his arm carefully in my hands, ready to take away his pain again.  
"No," His raspy voice stops me. "Y-you have to stop now."  
I go to protest, but Derek shakes his head.  
"You look like you're ready to pass out Thea." 

He's right, I must look as tired as I feel. So instead I go to grab him a bottle of water.  
"You need to go home and get some rest." Derek says after I've handed him the bottle.  
"I'm not leaving you like this." I reply, there's no way I can leave him.  
"Thea, you need to go home."  
"No, I- "  
"Just _go_!" Derek growls out, his eyes flashing blue.

Hurt washes over me, and I can feel my eyes stinging. Derek's expression softens, and he opens his mouth about to say something. But I don't wait around to hear what he has to say. I stand up quickly, and rush out of the house. 

* * *

When I get home, I take another shower then get ready for school. There's no way I'll be able to sleep now anyways. 

The school day pass by slowly, and it's doing little to keep my thoughts clear of Derek.  
I walk towards the parking lot with Scott and Stiles. Seeing as I ran to school this morning, Stiles is giving me a ride. 

Just after pulling out of the parking lot, Stiles slams his foot down on the breaks. I look through the windshield, I see a familiar dark clad figure standing in front of the jeep.

"Derek!" I exclaim, rushing out of the jeep. Scott and Stiles hot on my trail.

"What are you doing here?" Scott asks as we kneel down besides Derek.

"I was shot." He pants out, glancing over at me quickly before looking back at Scott.

"He's not looking so good, dude." Stiles says.

"Why aren't you healing?" Scott questions Derek.

"I can't. It was – It was a different kind of bullet."

"A silver bullet?" Stiles inquires.

"No you, idiot!"

"Wait, wait. That's what she meant when she said that you have 48 hours." Scott adds in and my head snaps towards him,  
"What?!"

"What? Who – who said 48 hours?"

"The one who shot you." Just as he says that, Derek's eyes start flashing to his wolf's blue color.

"What are you doing? Stop that!"

"I'm trying to tell you, I can't!" Derek says. Scott looks at me then back at Derek.

"Derek get up!" Several cars are lining up, getting impatient and coming out to check what's going on.

"Help me get him in the jeep Thea." 

I help Scott put Derek in the passenger seat, before running around on the driver side to crawl into the back of the jeep. 

"I need you to find out what kind of bullet they used." Derek tells Scott.

"How the hell am I supposed to do that?"

"She's an Argent, she's with them."

"Why should I help you?" Scott argues.

"Because you need me." Derek replies.

"Scott." I call out softly, he turns to me and I give him a desperate look. He sighs before looking back to Derek.

"Fine, I'll try." He then turns to Stiles just as he gets in the jeep, "Hey, get him out of here."

"I hate you for this, so much." Stiles says as we pull out of the parking lot. 

* * *

As we drive around, I lean forward to help Derek take off his jacket.  
"How are you feeling?" I ask him carefully.  
Derek looks at me for a second before turning his gaze to his arm. "As bad as I probably look right now." I give him a tight smile before leaning back in the jeep again. 

"Need more time." Stiles reads out loud the text Scott sent him. "You have any idea what kind of bullet it is Thea?"  
"No, I just know it's some form of wolfsbane."

Stiles then turns to Derek, "Hey, try not to bleed out on my seats, okay? We're almost there."

"Almost where?" I question at the same time as Derek.

"Your house."

"What? No, you can't take me there." Derek replies quickly.

"I can't take you to your own house?" Stiles asks incredulously.

"Not while I can't protect myself."

He's right. He would be helpless if the hunters decided to show up. And I'm too exhausted to fight them off on my own.

Stiles turns to me, "What about your house?"

"No good, I'm pretty sure Scott's mom is home. She always checks to see what I'm up to. And you know the old man next door? He already thinks I'm insane, he's seen me jump off my balcony one too many times." I reply, thinking about the looks old Mr. Holden gives me every time he sees me before hurrying away. 

Stiles pulls over to the side of the road.

"What happens if Scott doesn't find you little magic bullet, hmm? Are you dying?" He asks Derek.

"Not yet," Derek pants "I have a last resort."

"What do you mean? What last resort?!" Just then, Derek rolls up his sleeve.

"Oh my god, what is that?! Oh, is that contagious? You know what, you should probably just get out." Stiles says looking thoroughly disgusted.

"Start the car. Now." Derek demands.

"II don't think you should be barking orders with the way you look, okay? In fact, I think if I wanted to, I could probably drag your little werewolf ass out into the middle of the road and leave you for dead!"

"Stiles, if you don't start the car, I'm throwing you out and driving it myself." I say, getting annoyed by his reluctance.

His head snaps around, giving me a wide eyed look before scoffing. "I'll just grab the keys."

"I'll hotwire it."

"My dad's the sheriff."

"My dad's a lawyer."

"…"

We stare each other down for a few seconds before Stiles gives me a suspicious look.

"Why are you so hellbent on helping him anyways?!"  
I don't say anything, and Stiles looks at me, then Derek.

"No.. no no no! Why?!" He exclaims flailing his arms around before giving me a sharp look.

"You and I are gonna have a talk when this is over!" Stiles insists before turning back around, grumbling to himself.  
Derek turns to Stiles, "Start the car. Or I'm gonna rip your throat out - with my teeth." 

After glaring at each other, Stiles reluctantly starts driving again.  
I lean forward a bit, putting my hand on Derek's right shoulder, trailing it down to his hand. Derek looks at me through the mirror before turning his hand over, entwining his fingers with mine. I might still be slightly sulky about this morning, but that's not going to stop me from showing him that I'm here for him. Either he wants it or not. 

* * *

After driving around for hours, and several unanswered texts and phone calls. Scott finally calls Stiles.

"What am I supposed to do with him?" Stiles asks Scott as he looks over at Derek.

" _Take him somewhere. Anywhere_ "

"And by the way, he's starting to smell."

" _Like – like what?" Scott questions._

"Like _death_!" Stiles hisses out. I glare at him, a low growl rumbling in my chest.  
Derek squeezes my hand, my eyes snap over to him and I'm already starting to calm down again from the feeling of his hand in mine.  
 _  
_" _Okay, take him to the animal clinic_." Scott tells Stiles.

"What about your boss?"

" _He's gone by now. There's a spare key in the box behind the dumpster_."

"You're not gonna believe where he's telling me to take you" Stiles says as he hands his phone over to Derek. 

"Did you find it?" Derek nearly slurs the question out. He's starting to look worse by the minute, and my internal panic is increasing.

" _How am I supposed to find one bullet? They have a million. This house is like - the fricken Walmart of guns._ "

"Look, if you don't find it, then I'm dead, all right?"

" _I'm starting to think that wouldn't be such a bad thing._ "

"Then think about this. The Alpha called you out against your will. He's gonna do it again. Next time you either kill with him or you get killed. So if you wanna stay alive, then you need me. Find the bullet." Derek finishes before hanging up the phone. 

As Stiles starts to drive again, I lean my head against Derek's headrest, my hand still holding his tightly. 

* * *

It doesn't take us long to get to the animal clinic, and I all but crawl over Stiles to get to Derek. I help him out of the car and over to the clinic as carefully as I can as Stiles goes to find the key.  
As I help Derek sit down, Stiles gets a text.

"Does Nordic blue monkshood mean anything to either of you?"

"It's a rare form of wolfsbane. He has to bring me the bullet." Derek says.

"Why?" Stiles demands.

Derek huffs, "Because I'm gonna die without it." 

We walk in to the treatment room and Derek turns to me. "Help me take my shirt off."

I raise a brow at him, "Not exactly the situation I wanna be in when you tell me something like that." It doesn't stop me from helping him of course. 

"Okay. You know, that really doesn't look like anything some echinacea and a good night of sleep couldn't take care of." Stiles says after looking at Derek's arm

"When the infection reaches my heart, it'll kill me." Derek replies as he starts searching the drawers and cupboards.

""Positivity" just isn't in your vocabulary, is it?" Stiles retorts.

"If he doesn't get here with the bullet in time - Last resort."

"Which is?" Me and Stiles questions

"You're gonna cut off my arm." Derek replies, looking at Stiles as he holds up an electric handsaw.

Stiles takes the handsaw and it buzzes loudly as he squeezed the power switch. "Oh my god! What if you bleed to death?"

"It'll heal if it works." Derek says with a rubber band between his teeth.

I take the band from him, tying it tightly around his upper arm over his bicep. "Not if. It will work. It has to…" I trail off. I can't even imagine losing Derek. Just the thought sends a jolt of pain through my chest. I doubt I'd be able to be as strong as dad. Even after knowing my mate for only a short while, it feels like I need him just as much as I need air to even function properly. 

"Can't just Thea do it?" Stiles inquires, looking pleadingly at me. My eyes widen and before I can even reply, Derek gives Stiles a fierce glare.  
" _No_!" He growls, eyes flashing blue. I go to stand behind Derek, placing my hands on his waist, leaning up to kiss each spiral of his tattoo.

"Ugh, look. I don't know if I can do this." Stiles says with a disturbed expression on his face.

"Why not?!" Derek demands.

"Well, because of the cutting through the flesh, the sawing of the bone, and especially the blood!"

"You faint at the sight of blood?" Derek asks incredulously.

"No, but I might at the sight of a chopped - off arm!"

"All right, fine. How about this? Either you cut off my arm, or I'm gonna cut off your head."

"Okay, you know what, I'm so not buying your threats any –" Derek grabs Stiles by his shirt, pulling him forwards and gives him a fierce glare.

"Oh, my God. Okay. All right, bought, sold. Totally. I'll do it. I'll do it." Just then, Derek groans and leans over the side of the operating table.

"What? What are you doing?" Stiles asks.

"Holy God, what the hell is that?" He questions as Derek throws up what looks to be black blood.

"It's my body - Trying to heal itself." Derek groans out.

"Well, it's not doing a very good job of it." Stiles quips back at him. 

Derek looks over at me before turning to Stiles again.

"Now. You gotta do it now."

"Look, honestly, I don't think I can."

"Just do it!" Derek yells at Stiles.

"Oh, my God. Okay, okay. Oh, my God. All right, here we go!" Stiles says holding the saw to Derek's arm. I lean against Derek's back whimpering quietly as I get ready to take his pain again.

"Stiles! Thea!"

"Scott?" Me and Stiles replies. And I'm nearly sagging with relief as I see him come through the door.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Scott asks incredulously, looking at the saw Stiles is holding against Derek's arm.

"Oh, you just prevented a lifetime of nightmares." Stiles replies, relief evident on his face.

"Did you get it?" Derek pants out between heavy breaths, and Scott hands him the bullet.

"What are you gonna do with it?" Stiles asks.

"I'm gonna - I'm gonna –" Just as he was going to answer, Derek drops the bullet and falls over. I rush over to his side. Placing his head in my lap.

"Derek?" I slap his cheek, not too hard of course, just enough to hopefully rouse him.

"No. No, no, no, no." Scott chants as we watch the bullet roll down in the drain.

Stiles rushes over to where I'm seated with Derek. Stiles claps his cheek repeatedly

"Derek. Derek, come on, wake up. Scott, what the hell are we gonna do?!"

"I don't know! I can't reach it." Scott says as he's trying to reach for the bullet.

I grab Derek's shoulders with both of my arms, taking his pain away. How the hell he endured this the whole day, I'll probably never be able to understand. Because after only a few seconds I feel ready to pass out. I reluctantly pull my hands back, and settle for running my fingers through his damp hair.

"Oh! I got it! I got it!" Scott exclaims as he rushes towards us with the bullet.

"Please don't kill me for this." Stiles says as he balls his hand into a fist, and punches Derek straight in the face.

"Ugh! Ow! God!" He shakes out his fist with a pained expression.  
Luckily it worked.

"Give me –" Derek says, and Scott hands him the bullet as we help him up from the floor.

I stay by Stiles side as Derek bites the top off the bullet. He pours the wolfsbane out and lights it on fire before scooping it up in his hand. I watch as he mentally prepares himself before rubbing the burnt wolfsbane into the bullet wound. He falls down with a yell, his back arching off the floor as he roars out in pain as the wound heals completely.

"That - Was - Awesome! Yes!" Stiles exclaims, pumping his fist.

I rush over to Derek, helping him up as he starts to remove the tourniquet.

"Are you okay?" Scott asks. I run my hands carefully over Derek's left arm while checking over him, making sure that he's ok. He puts his big hands on my waist, pulling me close and I nuzzle against his chest.

"Well, except for the agonizing pain." Derek replies to Scott's question.

"I'm guessing the ability to use sarcasm is a good sign of health." Stiles quips, but quickly shuts up after receiving a harsh glare from Derek. 

"Okay, we saved your life, which means you're gonna leave us alone, you got that? And if you don't, I'm gonna go back to Allison's dad, and I'm gonna tell him everything –"  
Scott doesn't get to finish his sentence before Derek interrupts.

"You're gonna trust them? You think they can help you?"

"Well, why not?!" Scott questions him. "They're a lot freaking nicer than you are!"

Derek scoffs quietly. "I can show you exactly how nice they are."

"What do you mean?" Scott asks carefully.

"Well, you two have fun. Me and Thea are gonna go have a little talk." Stiles says giving me a pointed look.

"No, she's coming with me. You can talk to her tomorrow." Derek replies, leading me out the door with Scott following us. 

* * *

Arriving at Beacons crossing home, Derek turns to me. "You stay here." I don't question it, too mentally and physically exhausted to put up a fight. He gets out of the car, popping the seat forward so Scott can get out, and almost as soon as they're out of my sight, my eyes close. 

The sound of a car door slamming shut wakes me from my short nap, and I blink my eyes open.  
I look over at Derek who wears a tense expression.  
"Are you ok?" I ask him quietly, as I reach for his hand that's gripping the steering wheel. 

He looks at me, and his eyes soften. "I'm fine." He says shortly. "I'll drive you home."  
"Can you stay with me tonight?" I ask him shyly, looking up at him from under my lashes. After the day we've had, I'm not ready to leave his side. All I want to do is crawl into my bed with him, snuggle in his arms and fall asleep for the next 20 hours. 

"Sure." Derek answers. "Listen – about this morning…" He trails off looking like he's thinking carefully about choosing his next words. "I – I'm sorry. You made this whole situation a lot more bearable, and I was an asshole. I just…" 

"Hey, it's ok." I say as my left hand cups his cheek. "I know." Derek looks relieved. It might have taken me some time, but I came to the conclusion that he pushed me away because he didn't want me to see him in the shape he was, and that he's so used to taking care of himself. Dealing with that and the pain he was in must have thrown him for a loop, and I don't blame him for it. But his apology is heartwarming, and I lean over, kissing him with as much passion as I can muster.  
Derek responds to the kiss immediately, his hands cupping my face as he deepens the kiss. 

All too soon for my liking, he pulls back and we're both breathing heavily.  
"We need to get going to your house. You need to rest now." Derek says quietly, giving me a last peck on my lips before starting the car.

He grabs my hand and twines our fingers together as he drives away from the crossing home. 

Back at my house, it doesn't take long before I'm in bed with my head resting on Derek's chest. One of his hands on my waist and the other around my shoulders holding me close to him. I nuzzle my face into the juncture between his neck and shoulder and gives him a soft kiss there before letting out a yawn before laying my head back on his chest.  
Derek chuckles and kisses my forehead. "Go to sleep. I'll be here when you wake up."  
I don't get to reply, already half asleep, listening to the soothing rhythm of his heartbeat.


End file.
